


Café Mom(s)

by AmerUKa_4



Category: Once Upon a Time (TV)
Genre: Angsty Regina, Apologies for the length tbh, Autumn feels, Canada, Cursed NYC Emma feels, F/F, Family Fluff, Feel-good, Fluff, Friendship Turned Relationship, Long-Distance Relationship, Online Relationship, Season 01 Regina feels, Single Parent AU, Slow Burn, Somewhat extremely slow burn, USA, Understanding Emma
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-05-24
Updated: 2019-05-02
Packaged: 2019-05-13 06:45:43
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 17
Words: 40,895
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14743925
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmerUKa_4/pseuds/AmerUKa_4
Summary: Regina is happy. Definitely. Right?She has everything a woman could ask for. A beautiful large colonial home in a quaint small town; that she just happens to be the mayor of. A classic Mercedes that car collectors would kill for. A self-assured attitude that reminds everyone in her quaint town that she is in control. It's just how she likes it. No, needs it. Regina is a perfectionist to say the least and will not stand for anything less.But what happens when Regina is still left feeling unfulfilled? She will need to find answers.Answers she ends up acquiring from a certain website.----------------------------------------------------------Emma is a single mom. Exhausted. Overworked. But happy.Henry is her pride and joy. He's five and is just starting kindergarten. Emma is terrified that her son will have trouble adjusting. One day, her fears are realized when he runs to her with tears in his eyes.That's it for Emma. She will do whatever it takes to help her boy acclimate to his new life.As Emma begins to run out of ideas, she turns to a website for help.





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> Short First Chapter to start us off :)

Chapter One

 

A brisk chill in the air and wet leaves on the ground gave way to an early Autumn. The mayor’s heels clicked on the sidewalk at a speedy pace, on her way to the office. There were waves and ‘good mornings’ from friendly townsfolk as she kept her pace. It was the first Monday in September and the mayor didn’t have time to waste with passers by. There were things to be done: budgets to meet, potholes to fill, events to plan. Having to walk to work this morning didn’t help her mood. The mayor’s classic Mercedes started acting up on the weekend and would apparently take until that evening to repair. 

Regina Mills made it to her office at 8 on the dot; refusing a morning walk as an excuse to arrive to work late. She stiffly greeted her secretary, Kathryn, with a firm nod. Kathryn immediately handed the mayor her coffee and informed her of the upcoming meetings and calls for the day. A meeting with the owner of the local diner to discuss a budget allowance to expand the restaurant to acquire a patio. After that, a few phone calls to tie loose ends to some construction projects around the small town. Following that, a meeting with the Storybrooke school’s faculty to discuss the upcoming Fall Festival plans. To top it off, there was a pile of paperwork waiting to be filled out. Regina sighed knowing how busy her day was about to be. She thanked Kathryn and sat behind her large desk to begin her Monday.

It was 6 pm before the Mayor even noticed she hadn’t eaten anything since breakfast. Her stomach began to ache with hunger, and at this point she wished she had thought to grab something from the diner earlier after discussing the budget. Locking her office door, Regina made her way to the local mechanic to pick up her Mercedes. Finally arriving home at 7:30 and not understanding why the idiotic blockhead of a mechanic decided to blabber on and on about the issues he had already repaired, Regina dropped onto her luxurious couch with another sigh. It seems she had been sighing quite a lot lately. Picking herself up knowing dinner wasn’t going to make itself, she pulled out the ingredients for her dinner that evening. 

Plating her chicken marsala with fresh green beans, she walked over to her table ready to finally enjoy her second meal of the day. Before arriving home, Regina considered ordering a pizza after her overwhelming day. She scoffed at her past thoughts from an hour ago, knowing her mother did not raise her daughter to eat greasy food like some barbarian. Regina was more refined. Cutting into her meal, she couldn’t help but imagine what it would be like to have someone actually sitting with her for dinner. Before taking her first bite, Regina glanced across the table, allowing her imagination to take her away. She pictured someone’s smile. She wasn’t sure whom, but whomever it was they certainly enjoyed her company. She glanced to the end of the long table, too large for one. If she truly imagined hard enough, she could almost make out a highchair with someone’s little giggle to go right along with it. 

Regina blinked. Twice. She was starting to doubt her sanity after that imagery. Looking across from her again and simply seeing upholstered chairs pushed into the dining table, Regina cleared her throat and blinked a third time. Standing up and making her way to her bar, she decided tonight called for a glass of cider. A very tall glass. 

 

\---------------------------

 

Emma Swan flinched and squinted to look at her alarm clock. Bolting upright and realizing that they had slept in, she smacked her alarm clock off and rushed out of bed. She clicked the coffee pot on, thankful that she had recently started preparing it before bed, and made her way to her son’s room. Henry was fast asleep and looking like the little cherub he was. Emma winced, hating to disturb her son’s rest. Especially today. It was Henry’s first day of kindergarten and Emma couldn’t help her apprehension. Not that she didn’t believe in her son to adjust and be the most wonderful student he could be, she just didn’t trust anyone else. Henry was truly everything to Emma. Deciding she had already allotted herself too much time to ponder her own first day jitters, she made her way to rouse her little boy out of his sleep. 

\-----

“Henry! Come eat your waffle please!”

Henry ran into the kitchen like a lightning bolt with an extra jolt of energy. After a stern look from his mom, Henry gave a shy smile and slowed down to take his seat at the small kitchen table. Handing him his tiny fork and knife, Henry began cutting into his waffle with a side of blueberries. Emma had encouraged independence from a young age, including using his own utensils. She scanned over his uniform to be certain everything was in place as she handed him his milk in his favorite Avengers cup. 

“Mom, why do I have to wear this uniform again?”

Emma smiled as her son tugged on his tight collar.

“Henry, don’t tug on that please. You may not think it now, but you are very lucky to be wearing that uniform, kiddo. It means that you have made it into one of the best primary schools in the province.”

Henry immediately removed his hand from his collar, knowing after five years that not arguing with his mother was the less problematic choice. 

“Besides, you look so very handsome! I love the navy blue color on you, kid.”

After making sure he was finished chewing his last bite, Emma reinforced her opinion with big kiss to his cheek and a tickle under his arm. Henry let out a surprised scream followed by a giggle as he tried to squirm away from his mom’s unrelenting tickles. Moving down to his belly and knowing that was what would really make him laugh, Emma planted more kisses to his cheeks and he roared with laughter. Just as Henry was about to slip off of his chair, his mom grabbed him to pull him onto her lap. As he finally allowed his breath to catch up, Emma’s eyes brimmed with tears. Henry being the ever astute child noticed immediately. 

“What’s wrong momma?”

“Nothing sweetheart, nothing is wrong.” Emma made quick moves to swipe away any tears behind her eyes.

“Momma, I always know when something is wrong. I can always tell when you’re lying, ‘member?”

Emma laughed out loud at this, her laughter somewhat adding more moisture to her eyes. 

“Yes I’m very aware of that kiddo. Where do you think that gene passed down from?” Giving him a raised eyebrow and a sly smile. Henry giggled again, but it was quickly replaced by a serious expression. Emma knew she had to give him an indication of why she was crying. 

“Okay kid, okay. I’m not getting off the hook for this one am I. I promise I wasn’t crying because I was sad. They were happy tears.”

“Happy tears, momma? Can’ts you only have sad ones?” Henry was looking up at her with wide, concern filled eyes.

Emma laughed again at his cuteness “No, sweetie. Tears can be happy too. Those tears were because I’m so incredibly proud of you and so so happy to be your mom.” 

Henry smiled immediately feeling a sense of pride after what his mom said. Emma effortlessly smiled back and kissed him on his chubby cheek one more time. Remembering they were running a bit behind for Henry’s first day, Emma threw the dishes into the sink with a promise to get back to them later. Helping Henry into his jacket and shoes, Emma grabbed his backpack and ushered him out of the apartment to commence his first day of school.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This Chapter is all Regina.
> 
> \---------
> 
> I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far! Thank you all for reading and leaving comments.. always appreciated :) 
> 
> Enjoy!

Slowly opening her eyes to serene darkness outside, Regina checked the clock next to her bed. Six AM exactly, sans alarm. She wasn’t surprised to see that time, knowing that her body was on such a regimented schedule. Feeling less and less of a morning person as the years went by, Regina rolled herself off of her plush bedding. She immediately jumped into the shower to start her morning routine. As it tends to happen whilst showering, the mayor let her mind wander back to her previous thoughts from the evening before. 

‘What was that about? Do I want a significant other that badly that I’m imagining it? How pathetic is that?  
Maybe I’m just exhausted...  
I have been working extra hours lately. It must be affecting my emotional state.’ She thought with furrowed eyebrows.

Rolling her eyes at her own ludicrous imagination, Regina carefully stepped out of the shower to finish her morning routine.

 

….

 

“Kathryn, could you please inform the Storybrooke Elementary School that I will be stopping by this afternoon to continue discussing plans for the Fall Festival?” 

The mayor buzzed her secretary waiting for her answer.

“Of course, Madame Mayor. They will be ready for the meeting at four when school is dismissed.”

“Thank you, Kathryn.” Regina hung up the line. Kathryn was an extremely competent secretary and Regina hoped she would never have to work without her secretarial skills. She had been working for the mayor for a few years now, and Regina was very aware of the young woman’s hopes to move on from office work and open her own patisserie. Kathryn, amongst her many other skills, was a wonderful baker. Regina sighed again, knowing everyone seemed to eventually leave her. Kathryn had become somewhat of a close colleague in the last few years… something Regina was not accustomed to. 

 

\-------------------------------

 

Regina made her way through the doors of Storybrooke Elementary later that afternoon when something quickly slammed into her legs, knocking the Mayor off balance. She stumbled for a moment and angrily looked around ready to scold whomever dared knock the dignified Mayor nearly out of her Jimmy Choos. Not seeing anyone, she glanced down upon hearing a small voice 

“Oh I am so sorry Madame Mayor! I’m so clumsy. Th-that was all my fault. I-I’m sorry” 

A blonde little boy, possibly 6 or 7 years old was quickly gathering up his items that previously flung from his backpack after the collision. Regina still wearing her ‘someone is going to pay for this’ mask, slowly let her guard down realizing it was just a small boy. The young man was shaking a bit in embarrassment and fear of possibly being reprimanded. He quickly threw his items in his backpack and hurried off before Regina could even address his apology. Shrugging her shoulders, Regina decided to move along in hopes of finding the principal of the school to begin their meeting. 

 

…..

 

“I don’t understand how we’re meant to have a dunk tank featured for the Fall Festival, Mr. Miner. It’s a FALL Festival. If you weren’t quite aware, that means it will be taking place in Autumn.” Regina portrayed her classic resting bitch face to the Geology teacher.

“It was just a suggestion, jeez.” Leroy solemnly replied.

“Okay, I believe we’re getting off base here. I think Mayor Mills has, as always, made some wonderful suggestions for this year’s festivities. I believe we have enough events to keep the town occupied for the weekend. Our pumpkin patch is coming along nicely, and should be ready for visitors the week before October.” Principle Nolan tersely replied, knowing it was time to diffuse the tension between Mayor Mills and Leroy. 

Everyone nodded their heads in agreement with him, knowing the festival ran without a hitch every single year. Everything ran without a hitch with the Mayor at the helm. Regina politely thanked Principle Nolan and the remaining staff - eyeing Leroy fervently on her way out of the small conference room. Briskly making her way out of the building, Regina was contemplating ordering that pizza again after yet another arduous day when she immediately halted. Looking down at shy and embarrassed eyes, Regina gave a glare to the same little boy who ran into her before. 

“You were lucky at least one of us was looking this time, young man. Please do watch where you are going or you could find yourself needing assistance from the school nurse!”

The little boy began to softly apologize again, knowing his clumsiness would get him in trouble one day. At the complete despondent look in his eyes and hearing his regretful apologies, Regina absolutely crumbled. As tears began to brim his big blues, the Mayor couldn’t help herself from apologizing right back.

“I’m so sorry, I.. I didn’t mean to scold you, I ..” The little boy’s demeanor changed instantly, shyly smiling up at the Mayor and wiping his eyes. 

“Madame Mayor, why are you apologizing? It was my own fault I wasn’t looking. You are right, I need to be more careful. I can just be so clumsy and dumb sometimes…” The boy trailed off.

“Young man, you are NOT dumb. It is human nature to be clumsy on occasion. This does not make one dumb. Let’s forget about it, okay? Just please do be careful, I would hate to come back for another meeting and see you sitting in the Nurse’s office on my way there.” She blinked giving him a small friendly smile, the boy effortlessly smiling back. 

Not realizing she had crouched down to his level, Regina suddenly began to stand, wiping off her lined pencil skirt with her stoic mayoral face back in place. She began to walk away from the young boy when she yet again felt a sudden jolt to her legs. She looked down wondering how he had not remembered her advice from literally 3 minutes previous when her eyes began to cloud over. The little boy was squeezing her tightly in a hug. The Mayor couldn’t quite believe her eyes. Right when she began questioning whether this was her imagination running away with her again, the little boy pulled back and raised his hand.

“Thank you Madame Mayor. Everyone else gets angry with me over my clumsiness. You were super nice and just.. Well.. thank you.” 

The mayor, shaking his little hand, was somewhat at a loss for words. 

“You’re welcome young man. I understand, I can be a bit clumsy sometimes as well. Continue trying your hardest and you’ll be just fine.” Knowing she was indeed never clumsy, she figured a small white lie to make the boy feel more at ease was called for. The boy gave her one last small hug and turned to walk out of the door to his school bus. He turned back around quickly, forgetting he never introduced himself but still attempting not to miss his bus home. 

“Oops, I forgot to tell you! My name is Lucas!” The little boy was practically beaming as he hollered. His bright smile caused the Mayor to ignore her instinct to reprimand him screaming in the middle of the school walkway. She returned his bright smile with one of her own.

“Well it was very lovely to meet you, Lucas. Remember to keep those eyes peeled.” She responded, realizing too late how he may not understand that idiom at his age. Lucas politely waved goodbye and jumped onto his bus. Regina smiled once more to herself, knowing without a doubt Lucas had been the highlight of her day. 

 

\------------------

 

Sitting down to another dinner alone that evening, Regina began to yet again prioritize thinking over eating. Knowing her thoughts should probably be consumed with the upcoming plans for the festival and her budget reports from the construction company, she couldn’t seem to keep the young boy off of her mind. 

‘How adorable was little Lucas today? I can’t believe I scared him so badly.   
I need to be more careful when applying my mayoral mask.  
He seemed to lighten up after a bit and even smiled a few times.   
That hug was so incredibly sweet.   
I wonder who his mother and father are? I don’t believe I’ve seen them around town with Lucas. What lucky parents, though. Such a sweet little boy…’

 

Regina’s thoughts silently trailed off as she came to a sudden realization. Knowing it sounded absurd to speak aloud to herself in an empty room, Regina whispered it anyway.

 

“I think I want a child.”


	3. Chapter 3

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for the comments and kudos!
> 
>  
> 
> This one is all Emma & Henry 
> 
> Enjoy guys :)

Emma was pacing outside of her son’s Primary School. She knew it would give off a nerve wracking aura to the other apprehensive parents crowding around the same entrance, but she just couldn’t help herself. Her baby boy was about to finish his first day of kindergarten. The morning seemed to go well enough, and Henry had a cheerful demeanor. He was a bit skittish when entering the large school. Emma looked around, ushering Henry through the front doors, surprised to see such a large entryway to a Primary School. They had shockingly arrived early after Emma had misjudged how much traffic there would be at 7 am. They promptly made their way to Henry’s classroom to meet his teacher. 

“Hi there Henry! I’m Miss Blanchard. I will be your new teacher!” Miss Blanchard addressed them with a warm smile and kind face. She extended her hand for Emma to shake “It is so wonderful to finally meet you as well Miss Swan.”

Emma politely shook her hand “It’s very nice to meet you as well, Miss Blanchard. Henry, say hello please.”

“Hello Miss Branchard.” Henry hesitantly announced.

Emma gave the teacher an apologetic look, “It’s Miss B-L-anchard sweetie…”

“Oh, sorry” Henry looked at the two women with a solemn face.

“Oh, that’s perfectly fine honey. You can actually call me Miss B! Much easier to remember.” She winked at him with a smile. 

Henry seemed to ease a bit around the teacher’s cheerful demeanor, which contended Emma greatly. She was truly hoping today would go well for her little boy and having a loving, enthusiastic teacher was certainly a good start.

“Henry, sweetie.. Why don’t you go hang up your things in your cubby right over there? One of them has your name already on it.” Miss Blanchard stated. Henry nodded and rushed over to find his cubby with his name.

Emma turned to the new teacher, “I just wanted to let you know, Henry is a very exuberant child… But he tends to come across pretty shy at first. Probably more so than the average five year old. He’s excited to start school, but seems reluctant at the same time. I just wanted to let you know, please feel free to call my number at any point today if he seems to be struggling.” Miss Blanchard was not at all new to shy children and was hoping Henry would  
speedily adjust to the school routine like many other children had before. Some children, on the other hand, took a bit longer to adjust. Miss Blanchard completely understood Emma’s concerns.

“Absolutely, Miss Swan. I understand how it can be on the first day. I will keep close attention to Henry’s mood throughout the day and inform you immediately if anything seems off.”

“Thank you so much, Miss Blanchard. I really appreciate it. It seems that moms have first day jitters too?” 

Miss Blanchard laughed. “Indeed they do, Miss Swan. Often times, worse than their kids.” She smiled. Emma returned her smile and went to approach Henry after he hung his items neatly in his cubby. 

“Okay kiddo, I’m taking off.” Quickly running fingers through his dark hair, she continued “Be sure to listen to Miss Blanchard and remember to share with your friends, okay?

Henry nodded and lowered his gaze to the floor. Emma immediately knew he was feeling nervous. She gently took his hand and led him over to his table where he sat with two other little kids. One girl and one boy. There was one extra seat not filled yet and Emma wondered if any of these kids would eventually become Henry’s friends. She began animatedly talking about all the things he may do today. Miss Blanchard eventually replaced Emma at the table talking about all of the exciting things the first day would hold. Emma kissed Henry on the head and whispered an “I love you” in his ear. He waved his mom goodbye, suddenly more interested in the upcoming prospect of making an apple out of popsicle sticks in arts and crafts. Emma slipped out of the room quietly, not wanting to disrupt his good mood again. As she drove to the hotel, Emma let a few tears slip from her eyes again. Thinking it was a bit preposterous to be crying whilst Henry was laughing, she parked in the hotel lot and made her way into work. 

 

Now that school was almost dismissed, Emma was considering how not receiving a call from Miss Blanchard was probably a good omen. Just then, the doors to the large Primary School swung open. Kids scattered out; the younger grades desperately searching for their parents, the older grades somewhat ignoring their names being called by their parents. Emma immediately saw Henry running out of the school, flinging himself into her arms. Emma tried with all her strength to avoid crying again. She gave her little boy the biggest hug of his life and gently eased him back. As she attempted that, she noticed he was still clinging onto her. 

“Henry, what? .. “

She looked down, horrified to see big tears falling from his hazel eyes. 

“Henry sweetie, what happened?!” 

Henry’s bottom lip started protruding “I.. I ..I…”

Emma gently pulled him into a hug “It’s okay kid. It’s okay. Just breath okay? Mom’s here. Let’s just get home and get you cleaned up for dinner. Then we can chat, okay?” 

Henry meekly nodded in agreement. On the drive home Emma was desperately trying to avoid showing Henry how frantic she felt inside. ‘What could have happened? Was it another kid who upset him? Did he get teased? Miss Blanchard said she would call me if anything was off?!’ Emma thought to herself. Knowing driving her little boy whilst thinking these strong thoughts wasn’t helping anything, Emma decided it was best to wait until dinner.

…..

“Henry, I think it’s time we talk about school, kiddo.” 

They had finished dinner and Henry was snuggled up in his dinosaur pj’s watching Trolls. Emma had just finished washing the dishes from the day, wiping over the counter with a swipe of a towel. She moved into the tiny living room and joined him on the couch. Pausing the movie, she approached the subject, knowing it was something Henry would try to avoid talking about.

“Do we have to?” Henry looked at her with his big hazel puppy-dog eyes. 

“Nice try kid. That isn’t going to work for this one. As adorable as those eyes are.”

Henry frowned, glancing behind Emma at the paused photo of Branch and Poppy in the Troll tree. Emma turned off the T.V. and kept eye contact with Henry. 

“Henry, please let me know what’s going on. I’m here to help okay? I’m your momma and you can tell me anything. Did something happen at school today?”

“No.” Henry quickly responded.

“Okay … Did nothing happen at school?”

“No.” Henry replied even quicker that time.

“Aha! So something did happen!” Emma smiled victoriously. 

Henry looked confused for a moment and then understood where she took that conversation. 

“Moooommm..” he whined

“Listen kid, you’re not getting off so easily for this one. If something happened that’s upsetting you, I need to know okay? The sooner the better as well. Class starts again tomorrow.. at the same time.”

Henry looked up at his mom with wide eyes. He hadn’t thought about his second day. Sighing, Henry finally gave in. 

“I just don’t think I fit in momma. None of the kids liked me.” Henry sadly stated.

Emma felt her heart shatter into pieces. How could no one like her little boy? That was absurd. He was the sweetest, most caring child she has ever know. 

“Henry, that is impossible sweetheart. You are such a kind hearted little boy and so friendly. I can’t imagine any one of those kids not getting along with you...

Henry, did you talk to Miss Blanchard about this when you were in class?”

Henry shyly looked at his mom, knowing she would have wanted him to do just that.

“No?”

“Henry..” ‘No wonder she didn’t give me a call’ Emma thought

“Henry, anytime you have any more issues or worries whatsoever, I want you to tell Miss Blanchard or I okay? It is very important we know how school is going for you, kiddo. Even if it is a small problem.. Like not knowing what color to use for your apple craft.” Emma playfully winked at him. 

“Okay momma, I pwomise.” With the subject of arts and crafts in the air, Henry rushed over to his backpack. “Momma I forgot to show you my craft from today!”

Henry bolted back to Emma after yanking it out of his backpack with a bit too much force. Luckily the craft survived Henry’s brute strength. 

“Henry this is so amazing! This apple is half eaten already… were you hungry?”

Henry giggled “Noooo momma! It’s just a stick and paper! Seeee?” Henry placed Emma’s hand over the paper to assure her it was, indeed, made of paper. Emma laughed out loud at her son’s cuteness, yet again. 

“I know kiddo, I’m just messing with you.” She winked and walked over to their fridge to display her son’s adorable craft proudly.

“Okay my little apple eater, it’s time for bed.”

“Okay momma.. Can we read ‘Are You My Mother’ tonight? Pwease?” Emma encouraged reading from a young age as well, and read to her son every night before bed. 

“Of course, kid. It’s one of my favorites too.” She smiled 

While Henry was tucked under his Avengers bedding, Emma finished up the last page: 

“ ‘Yes I know who you are’ said the baby bird. ‘You are not a kitten. You are not a hen. You are not a dog. You are not a cow. You are not a boat, or a plane or a Snort! You are a bird, and you are my mother.’ ” Emma glanced over to Henry to find him looking back at her. 

“I love you momma.” 

Emma couldn’t hold back the tears if her life depended on it. “I love you too, kid. So much. I know school is going to get better okay? Just remember to be yourself and let me know if anything else bothers you, okay?”

“Okay.” 

“Pinky swear?” Emma extended her pinky towards Henry

“Pinky sweaw.” He wrapped his small pudgy pinky around her’s. 

Emma tucked her boy in one more time, giving him a kiss on both cheeks. She turned off his lamp and wished him goodnight. She left the door cracked in the event he had a nightmare. They were rare but did sometimes happen. For a moment, Emma had a thought of how nice it would be for Henry to have another parent to help her tuck him in. They could each give him a kiss on one cheek, and stand at his door whispering ‘I love you’s’ to each other as his dreams took him away. Emma blinked, realizing Henry had long been asleep and she was still awkwardly standing at his door. She slowly and quietly made her way back into the living room to fold his Avengers blanket. It seemed the kid went through phases every year or so; this year was the Avengers. 

Emma made herself a cup of cocoa with cinnamon and made her way into her bedroom. Deciding against immediately going to sleep with too much on her mind, she set off to do a little research. Her baby boy was struggling to adjust and she wasn’t about to just stand by and watch him try to figure this out on his own. She had already made the assumption that she would be speaking to Miss Blanchard again tomorrow about Henry’s thoughts. It just felt like there was something more she could do for him. Emma sat at her desk and opened her laptop. Typing into google, ‘parenting chat site’. Thinking a little weird that it was the first thing to come to mind, Emma continued to scroll through the results. 

“Cafe Mom” She said aloud. She was (she surmised, at least) trying to get some helpful advice from other parents on the blog who have perhaps gone through a similar situation with their child. Thinking nothing could really hinder their dilemma by snooping at what other moms have discussed, Emma clicked on a link to open the discussion forums.


	4. Chapter 4

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! 
> 
> Another chapter for everyone :)
> 
> As always, thank you for all of the kudos and comments! 
> 
> I just wanted to apologize for our ladies not 'meeting' yet.. this is VERY much a slowburn fic. I didn't plan it that way, but after writing it just seemed to happen. So again, my apologies if that becomes frustrating. I hope everyone will still stick with it... my idea is that absence makes the heart grow fonder? Eh? 
> 
> What I mean is... it should hopefully be worth the wait! 
> 
> Thanks again everyone and enjoy :)

\------------------------------------------

Regina slowly returned to consciousness after hearing her alarm blaring loudly. She shot up realizing for the first time in years, she had slept in. Quickly glancing over at her clock and reading 6:15, she thanked the heavens that it was hardly a sleep in. Nevertheless, it was a sleep in and Regina promptly jumped out of her soft bedding to make up for lost time. The evening before, Regina spent hours researching artificial insemination and adoption. Finally arriving to a few conclusions and creating a plan after nearly a week of research, Regina fell asleep in her study. Jolting awake at 3am, the Mayor dragged herself to her bed in hopes of sleeping a few more hours. Sleeping in was not something she had accounted for.

 

The Mayor made quick work of showering, getting dressed and applying her makeup flawlessly. She gathered her paperwork from her study, including her baby plans, having just enough time to quickly grab toast and coffee on her way out. Regina had a strict ‘no eating or drinking in the Mercedes’ rule. As she sipped her coffee on her drive, she realized she would have to forgo that rule today. Regina parked in her usual spot outside of Storybrooke Town Hall and made her way into her office, politely nodding at Kathryn on her way. Kathryn followed, noticing the usually composed Mayor seemed slightly disordered this Monday morning. 

 

“Good morning Madame Mayor. Here is your schedule for today.” Kathryn smiled, handing over Regina’s itinerary.

 

“Everything seems to be in order for this week. The Fall Festival plans are coming along nicely, the budget for the construction of the new Library is being met and the Clocktower will be under repair for the next few days as surmised…” Kathryn trailed off noticing that Regina had been somberly staring at a piece of paper in her hands and not taking notice of her words. 

 

“Madame Mayor? Is everything alright?”

 

Regina glanced up realizing she had zoned out. “Yes. Yes, everything is fine. Thank you for the run through of the week Kathryn. It seems everything is moving along as planned.” Regina quickly reapplied her mask of indifference. Realizing Kathryn was still standing at the foot of her desk with a questioning look, Regina smiled reassuringly.

 

Kathryn nodded her head, thinking the Mayor must simply be having a frazzled Monday morning like almost everyone tends to. Kathryn smiled warmly at Regina “Please let me know if you need anything else this morning, Madam Mayor.”

 

“Thank you, Kathryn. I will.” 

…...

 

It was nearing lunch time when Regina decided to finally take a break from her monotonous paperwork, aligning it into a neat pile on the edge of her desk. 

 

“Kathryn, I’ll be taking my lunch break now. I am expecting a call from Sheriff Graham this afternoon. If he calls please let him know I will return it as soon as possible.” the Mayor buzzed through. 

 

“I will do just that, thank you Madame Mayor. Enjoy your lunch.” 

 

Regina pulled out her chicken salad and bottle of water preparing to eat at her desk. Thinking perhaps one of these days she should invite Kathryn to join her, she faintly rolled her eyes at her pathetic thoughts. She looked down again at her print out of her appointment with Doctor Whale. After lengthy research, Regina decided one of the first steps to take in hopes of getting pregnant was to have a fertility test. She made an appointment with her doctor for that upcoming Friday morning. 

 

Taking a few bites of her salad, Regina’s thoughts were filled with the prospects of having a child in the near future.

‘I will need to clear out a room for a nursery. Baby proofing will be a must and as soon as possible. I wonder if my car is safe enough for a new baby? Maybe I should think about trading it in for an SUV... I’m not even sure how to install a child’s car seat? Oh gosh, what sort of bottles do I even buy? Isn’t BPA a thing? I’ve heard some things about that. How much does a baby even eat?!’ 

 

Regina was so consumed by her thoughts and doubts that she almost didn’t hear her line buzz. Blinking out of her reverie, Regina answered her call. 

 

“Madame Mayor, I’m sorry to disturb your lunch, but Sheriff Graham is insisting you take his call. He is looking into hiring a new Deputy after Deputy Morris retired last week and wanted to run across some prospects with you. If you’d prefer to wait I will inform him to call back after lunch- ”

 

“That’s not necessary, Kathryn. I appreciate the sentiment but you can put the call through now.”

 

Regina knew she seemed aloof during the call with the Sheriff. He asked her on more than one occasion if she was still on the line. After a lengthy call covering the prospects of the Deputy position, the Mayor and Sheriff arrived to the same conclusion. They would have to trial hire two different men in hopes of finding the right fit. Regina finished her call with Sheriff Graham after he thanked her for her time. She glanced back down to her appointment letter for Friday. 

‘I am not going to get any work done lately unless I ease my mind.’ She thought with a sigh. ‘Maybe I’m overthinking, but I need to be the best mother possible. I need to do this right. I refuse to become my own mother.’ Regina shook some sorrowful memories from her head. Questioning how she could learn more about parenting, she pulled out her Macbook. 

 

“Is there some sort of Parenting.com website? Where does one go to start here?” Regina queried out loud to herself. “Parenting for dummies?” She giggled and then scoffed. ‘Did I just GIGGLE?’ 

 

“I may not quite know yet how to adequately parent a child, but I am certainly not a dummy. Alright let’s think. A parenting blog perhaps? Considering I will be raising this child alone, a blog specifically for mothers would be fitting.” She typed ‘a blog for mothers’ into the google search box. Not finding anything that stood out, Regina tried again. Typing in ‘mother’s chat site’, she took notice of the first result:

 

CafeMom.

 

\----------

 

After discussing Henry’s fears and worries with Miss Blanchard, Emma decided to take action. It was the Sunday after Henry had started school and his week gradually improved. Following his tear filled first day, Henry was hesitant to get out of the car in the mornings and would try his best to persuade Emma to stay with him when they finally made their way into the small classroom. Miss Blanchard suggested a few ideas to Emma, as well as Emma finding a few ideas on the forums. The best and only idea that seemed to be making headway was the stuffed animal trick. Emma hated calling it a trick. It sounded like she was trying to con her little boy. That was not the case. She simply wanted to do everything in her power to help Henry view school in a healthy manner.

 

The idea was originally from ‘Happy Momma of 2’ on CafeMom. Emma was hesitant to attempt a technique from a random mom but she and Miss Blanchard were swiftly running out of ideas. The ‘trick’ was to simply take one of Henry’s favorite stuffed animals with him to school. That sounded simple enough until Emma reached the second step; add something of her’s onto the stuffed animal. Emma was slightly boggled and so decided to ask Henry’s teacher once more for advice. Miss Blanchard came to a perfect conclusion.

 

“Would you be able to bring me an article of clothing that smells like you?”

 

Emma blinked. “Excuse me.. what now?”

 

The teacher suddenly went wide eyed realizing how weird her question sounded. “Oh, gosh I am so sorry! I didn’t mean it that way, I-” 

 

Emma started laughing “Miss Blanchard, it’s alright… I was just pulling your leg. What did you have in mind?”

 

Miss Blanchard suddenly looked like she had just been let off the electric chair “Oh, okay. That was cruel!” She laughed “I am actually wonderful at sowing, I make all of the kid’s costumes for dress up for the classrooms. I was hoping you wouldn’t mind bringing me one of your shirts you aren’t too fond of and I can -in a way- shrink it for one of Henry’s stuffed animals.” She said with a friendly smile. 

 

“That would be amazing! Are you sure? I feel like Henry and I are already taking up so much of your spare time..” Emma winced thinking how many hours the young teacher had already put into their predicament. 

 

“It is honestly not a problem, Miss Swan. I would do anything to help my kids adjust.” She smiled again. 

 

Emma smiled back “I genuinely appreciate that so much, thank you Miss Blanchard.”

 

“You are very welcome. Let’s hope this does the trick for our Henry!”

 

Emma was thinking back on how it indeed did the trick. She ended up bringing Miss Blanchard one of her old winter sweaters. The teacher went to work on fitting it to Henry’s stuffed fox, the stuffed animal looking quite dapper with his new sweater. Henry nearly squeezed the plush life out of the little guy when he saw him, laughing at how adorable he looked. Emma at first questioned why on Earth she would need one of her articles of clothing for this. ‘Why can’t I buy his fox a little vest or something, I’m confused?’ She thought. Thanks again to the mom of two on her new blog, her question was explained. It seemed that babies and children recognize the scent of their own mother. This then provides comfort when their mother isn’t around. Emma was pretty shocked by that information, and pleasantly surprised to see it work right in front of her eyes. Henry was indeed adjusting, slowly but surely. Emma told him whenever he missed her to squeeze Mr. Fox just like he had that first time. Henry promised that he would also tell Emma about his day at school every evening at dinner time. Emma knew from her own childhood and past mistakes that keeping feelings bottled up inside was not healthy. She wanted to encourage an open line of communication for them. 

 

That evening after dinner, Emma and Henry decided to bake something for Miss Blanchard as a thank you for the week. Emma was not the most skilled cook and her baking took an even further backseat to that. The baking had been Henry’s idea. She hoped Henry’s skills exceeded her’s.

 

“Okay kiddo.. Here we go..” Emma brought over the chilled dough “Now we have to roll them into small ball shapes. SMALL Henry. By small I mean smaller than your head.” Emma playfully winked at him and kissed his head for effect.

 

“Moooommm I know! Look!” Henry proudly held a perfect round shaped piece of dough the size of a Toonie. 

 

“Wow Henry that’s perfect! Looks like someone may own a bakery when they grow up.”

 

Henry looked at his mom with a 1000 watt smile. Emma kissed his cheek. He was just so cute.

 

“Okay Mr. Baker, now we have to roll that into our cinnamon sugar mixture and plop them on the cookie sheet to bake. Momma will handle that part, okay?”

 

Henry started laughing. When he didn’t stop and it just became more hysterical Emma had to question him. “Alright kid what’s so funny?”

 

“Momma you said plop!” Henry was laughing so hard he had to wipe his tears away.

 

Emma at first couldn’t understand why Henry had found the word ‘plop’ so humorous, but his laughter was contagious as always. Emma started laughing and before she knew it, had flicked a little flour onto Henry’s nose. This sequentially began an all out flour brawl. After ten minutes the Swan family looked around…. Flour. Everywhere. Henry had a sudden thought that his mom would be upset by the mess until Emma started laughing again. Henry laughed along with her until the pair finally settled down.

 

“Alright my little baker here’s the deal.. You head on into the tub to wash that flour out of your hair while Momma baker cleans the kitchen. Comprende?”

 

“Comprende momma baker” Henry high-fived his mom and made his way into the bathroom. 

 

After setting up Henry in his bath, Emma made way to clean the disastrous mess in the kitchen. As she cleaned she thought through the past week, feeling hopeful for the week to come. ‘That flour fight was the most fun we’ve had in months. I think the kid needed to let loose a bit. Who am I kidding, so did I.’ 

 

Tucking a clean and pajama-ed Henry into his single bed, Emma grabbed their nightly book. This time reading through “Goodnight Moon” Henry could hardly keep his eyes open. Emma smiled at her little boy, letting him know she would finish his cookies, kissing him goodnight. 

 

“Night momma baker.. I love you”

 

“I love you, too kid. Always and forever.”

 

After leaving his door ajar, Emma placed the finished snickerdoodles in a box with a bow. Smirking at Henry’s choice of cookie, she guessed he chose the typical Christmassy confection because of the silly name. She hoped Miss Blanchard would be pleased with their choice. She grabbed Mr. Fox from the couch, making certain to place him in Henry’s backpack for the morning. She smiled again thanking her lucky stars that plan had worked. ‘I suppose I should thank Happy Momma of 2’ she smiled, deciding she would have to return to the blog for more tips. After a quick shower herself, Emma made her nightly cup of cocoa. She guessed after that she would be able to fall asleep easily, grateful that her mind was at ease again. 

 

\-------------------------------------


	5. Chapter 5

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi guys! 
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> I hope everyone is enjoying the fic so far.. I wanted to truly thank everyone for the comments and kudos. So very appreciated. 
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> I guess you could say that this chapter is somewhat the beginning of the beginning of future dialogue between our ladies lol. 
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> Enjoy!
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> P.s. : If you have time, jump over to my other fic 'Friendzoned' .. I just recently posted it, but I'd be so grateful for you guys to let me know what you think so far!
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> Again, thanks everyone and enjoy :)
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> \-----------------------------------------------

‘How to be a decent Mother who won’t disastrously affect her child’s future in a negative manner.’ Regina typed out into the subject bar. 

 

‘I really loathe asking for help. Maybe this is a silly idea. I’m sure I’ll be fine..’ She thought with a shake of her head. ‘.. Although I still have no clue as to what a BPA is. And I refuse to become my mother.’ Regina stiffened her posture to finish typing. She decided then and there that she would go to whatever lengths necessary to be the best mother she could possibly be… and to also google BPA.

 

‘Okay let’s try this. It’s simple and to the point.’ Potential First Time Mom looking for Advice and Tips. Regina nodded her head and continued onto the next bar. Delving further into her circumstance and fears, she filled out the next subject box. 

 

“I am a 32 year old single woman, very healthy. I have a reliable career as a Mayor of a small town and a beautiful home. I recently, although, have been feeling as if something is missing from my life. I’ve come to the conclusion that I would like to have a baby, either by IVF or Adoption. My appointment with my doctor is this Friday morning, but I cannot help thinking I am in over my head. I know absolutely nothing about children. I was an only child and my position as Mayor rarely allows me to cross paths with the younger residents of my small town.” Regina thought back to Lucas, a smile returning to her face thinking about his sweet hug. “I suppose I just want to know if any veteran mothers have any advice to give a hopeful new mom. I’m not quite sure where to start. Thank you!  
MadameMayor.

 

Before she could address her overwhelming feeling of embarrassment, Regina clicked enter. Immediately wanting to delete her entry into the blog, she closed her macbook not trusting herself to leave it alone. As her question hung in the air on the world wide web, Regina tried to shake the feeling of embarrassment. She was never one to ask for assistance for anything, especially something so personal.

‘Why did I write so much about myself? These people don’t care what I do. Some of those things I haven’t even told Kathryn. Perhaps I should delete it after all…’ 

Before her thoughts allowed her to do just that, Regina shook her head. She decided it was time for an early evening stroll to clear her mind. 

 

\----------

 

Emma kissed Henry goodbye and waved to Miss Blanchard with a genuine smile. As she walked out of the classroom, she saw Henry run over to his table animatedly speaking with another little boy. ‘That must be the Matthew kid he always talks about now.’ Emma thought. Henry was on his ninth day of school and Emma couldn’t be prouder. Henry had adapted extremely well this week with no further obstacles. When Emma picked him up at 3:30 every day, he was all smiles. They would discuss his days over dinner and it seemed Henry began to not only enjoy his time at school but look forward to it. His favorite part of his day was none other than spending time with his new teacher Miss Blanchard. Emma thought back to how incredibly surprised and thankful she was that she and Henry baked her cookies. Apparently no one had ever done that for her in her 7 years of teaching. Emma vowed to continue to support Henry’s thoughtful teacher with random acts of kindness. Henry was, of course, all in. 

 

Emma continued checking the blog every once in awhile, even creating a profile page in the circumstance she wanted to ask or respond to questions. She found a few ideas for outings and events for their weekends together, but for the most part the website was quiet lately. Emma thought it silly at first, that she was constantly checking a chat forum. In the end, it was usually for Henry’s benefit so she didn’t question her time on the site further. Just before logging off, she glanced at a new chat entry: Potential First Time Mom Looking for Advice and Tips. Emma furrowed her brow thinking that there were probably a few things she could help this potential mom with. After all, she shouldn’t only receive help, she should offer it as well. Without Happy Momma of 2’s help she wouldn’t have resolved Henry’s dilemma. She could do the same for other moms, right? Realizing she drifted off with her thoughts, Emma checked the time and hurried out of her car.

 

Making her way into the hotel, Emma clocked in. ‘9:03’ she cringed. A tad late today. Waving a friendly ‘hello’ or ‘good morning’ to her co-workers, Emma stepped behind the front desk. As she was pulling up the reservations on the monitor, and elderly couple walked up.

 

“Good Morning and welcome to the Fairmont Hotel. How may I assist you today?” Emma greeted with a smile. 

 

“Good morning, young lady. We are just checking in for our stay. Last name is Paulson.”

 

“Okay Mr. Paulson, I see you here. You and your lovely wife will be staying in room 107. Your room is all set for you, including spare towels and toiletries. Here are your room keys..” Emma handed them to the gentleman “If you have any trouble getting into the suite please let me know. I will be stationed here until three to assist you with anything that you may need. Breakfast and concessions are complimentary and the Hotel Bar is open until one am. I hope you enjoy your stay with us and enjoy your stay in Vancouver.”

 

Emma smiled again at the couple as they both thanked her and returned her friendly smile. As they walked toward the elevators, Emma could just make out the woman’s words “What a sweet young lady…” This made Emma’s smile grow. She loved her job. 

 

“Your face is going to get stuck like that one day, I swear.”

 

“Good morning to you, too Ruby.” Emma rolled her eyes dramatically.

 

“I guess as long as it doesn’t get stuck on that eye roll face you just pulled you’ll be alright.” Ruby laughed.

 

“Ha-Ha. You are such a brat.” Emma smiled “How’s your morning? I’m glad it will be us manning the front today.”

 

“Not bad, Jeremy woke up on the wrong side of the bed this morning though so I was here 20 minutes early. I was not in the mood to spend any extra time with the grump.” Ruby laughed and shook her head. “But a good morning overall. We have quite a few reservations today now that the weekend is closing in. Hope you are ready for the rush!”

 

“I was born ready, Rubes” Emma winked

 

This time, Ruby rolled her eyes. 

 

\---------

 

Emma tipped back her mug finishing the last of her cocoa with cinnamon as Henry was fast asleep under his Avengers duvet. She was just opening up her laptop, deciding that she still wanted to respond to the mom’s query she read before work. She recalled how nervous she had been before having Henry and how it would have eased her mind to have an experienced mother give her some sound advice. ‘I wish I knew about this discussion forum before’ she snickered. When Henry was a newborn, she had stumbled and floundered for months on end. It took her quite a while to adjust to life with a baby. ‘Henry wasn’t on a schedule until he turned one’ she scoffed. Emma had forgotten about that, thinking when she had another baby she would never again wait that long. A schedule and routine was a must from early on and that was something she had learned with Henry. 

 

“Wait, did I just think about having another baby?” She said aloud, surprising herself of her thought yet again. She shook her head “Anyway, where was I here..” She brought up a new tab and typed out the site into the search bar. Logging into her account, she looked for the woman’s post from before. Finding it immediately as it had been the only new post from the day, Emma clicked on the thread link. Rereading her entry, Emma couldn’t help her curiosity in looking for the woman’s name before she replied. 

 

MadameMayor. 

 

Emma wasn’t surprised to see the woman hadn’t chosen a quirky name for herself. She seemed like she was the type to keep it professional. Emma laughed at her own choice, TwoSwansaSwimming, thinking it a little juvenile now. ‘Eh, it’s cute. I’m kind of juvenile myself so I’m keeping it.’ she giggled. Scrolling down to reply, Emma noticed there were already a few there now. She wasn’t exactly surprised seeing as the original post was from last night. 

 

“My advice is to SLEEP. SLEEP NOW.” SpentMomofFive wrote. She was the first reply and Emma couldn’t help but laugh out loud at that response. ‘Okay then, reminding my future self to not have five kids…’ she thought. 

 

“You’ll be just fine! All babies need is love! And a lot of diapers.” TennesseeMomma wrote. That was responded to by MadameMayor. “I have heard they go through an abundance of diapers, but I am a bit more enthused about the love part.”

 

Emma laughed out loud.

 

She moved onto the last entry and was less amused by this one. “Are you sure you want to bring a baby into the world as a single parent? I highly doubt a single mother could give a child everything they will ever need in life. Maybe rethink your decision.” Natalie responded.

 

Emma was fuming. She couldn’t believe someone would be so crude, let alone to a stranger. Who was this woman to know that MadameMayor wouldn’t be a perfectly acceptable and loving mother? She seemed like she had it all together to Emma. She simply wanted to expand her family. The more Emma thought about it the more she raged inside. ‘I am a wonderful single mom, if I do say so myself.’ She decided this woman needed to be put in her place. Emma just wasn’t certain if it was appropriate to respond on another woman’s thread. She looked under the boorish comment and saw MadameMayor had not responded. ‘I hope she hasn’t hurt this woman’s feelings..’ Emma thought ‘maybe she just hasn’t noticed the comment yet. It was posted not too long ago..’ 

 

Emma couldn’t stop herself if she wanted to. She quickly clicked ‘reply’ under this Natalie person’s comment. Emma couldn’t explain why, but she felt the urge to protect this MadameMayor woman. She was simply asking for some advice from other moms. Not judgment. Emma let her fingers do the typing. It was almost as if her brain couldn’t catch up with the steady response from her fingertips.

 

“Listen here, Natalie. I’ll have you know that a single mother is one of the most admirable roles in the world. Single mothers take on not only the job role of the mom, the teacher, the chauffeur, the healer, the maid, the planner, the dietician, and the bill payer - they also bestow enough love on their child to make up for another prospective parent. I would know. I am a single mother to a beautiful, well rounded son. Perhaps before you judge others, take a look in the mirror. 

 

MadameMayor, I happen to agree with TenneseeMomma. ALL children truly need is love. And diapers. I think you will be a fantastic mom.  
TwoSwansaSwimming”

 

Not one to second guess her decisions, Emma pushed enter. She was curious what Natalie may respond with, if at all. Emma closed her laptop for the night and tucked into her white sheets. Squeezing her pillow and sighing before she drifted off, she hoped her response wouldn’t somehow offend MadameMayor.

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	6. Chapter 6

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“Alright, Miss Mills you are free to go.” Dr. Whale stated as he placed a band-aid over Regina’s forearm. “We will have the results of your blood test on Monday. I will give you a call then.” 

 

“Thank you, Dr. Whale. I appreciate it.” 

 

“Of course.” He replied with a smile.

 

Dr. Whale helped her off of the exam table and lead her out of the small room. She nodded a thanks to the nurses who assisted her as well and made her way back onto Main Street. Feeling the chill in the autumn air, she brought her hands up to tie her belt closer to her trench when she noticed them shaking vigorously. Nerves. Regina closed her hands into fists and walked up to the Town Hall. She shook her head and approached the elevator up to her office. 

 

‘Everything will be fine. I’m overthinking. Either way, if my results come back and I’m not fit for pregnancy, I would be overjoyed to adopt. That’s with the assumption that I will meet the requirements of that option, that is...’

 

As she exited the elevator, Kathryn was on the other side waiting for her arrival back to the office. “Hello Kathryn, any missed calls while I was gone?” 

 

“Madame Mayor.” Kathryn smiled. “Just a call from Principal Nolan about the Fall Festival. He just wants to be sure everything is in order for next weekend.”

 

Regina scoffed. “I would certainly hope he would trust the Mayor to coordinate plans for the town’s biggest festival without fail. If he would like to take a stab at being Mayor, he should have run for office.” Regina strode past Kathryn with certitude. 

 

“I.. I apologize Madam Mayor. I will return his call and let him know that everything is, of course, in order..”

 

“Wait, Kathryn. I-I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have snapped at you. You weren’t at fault.. just the messenger.” she smiled hoping Kathryn would accept her apology. “I will call Principal Nolan myself.”

 

Kathryn turned back from her stride out of the office, quite shocked. “That’s quite alright, Madame Mayor. If I had someone questioning my work, I would have reacted the same way.” she crookedly smiled. 

 

Regina snickered. “Thank you Kathryn. Not just for the forgiveness, but for the great attention and detail you put into your work here. I appreciate it.”

 

Kathryn was dumbfounded. Regina never once complimented her work and dedication to her position. “You are very welcome, Madame Mayor. I adore my job so I should be thanking you!” She beamed. 

 

Regina smiled back, thinking she may just have one friend in her quaint town after all.

 

\----------

 

Finishing the last of her paperwork for the day, Regina checked the time; 4:45. Figuring she would make an early exit after confirming that everything was in order for Monday, she buzzed through to Kathryn. 

 

“Kathryn, you can call it a day if you’d like. I’m about to finish up myself. I hope you enjoy your weekend and I’ll see you on Monday.”

 

“Thank you Madame Mayor, I appreciate it. I hope you enjoy your weekend as well!” 

 

“Thank you.” Regina’s smile sank realizing that her weekends were actually quite melancholy. 

 

‘Hopefully that will change soon.’ She thought. Getting ready to close her laptop, Regina remembered her post on CafeMom. Deciding that her lonely home would hold up without her for a bit longer, she brought up the link to check if anyone left any more advice. She gawked at the responses. Reading over ‘Natalie’s’ words, she almost laughed out loud to see someone so afflicted by her post that they felt the need to rebuttal with judgement. This Natalie woman was not about to affect the Mayor. She didn’t require some biased stranger’s approval to know she would be a devoted and loving mother. Regina had her doubts, but she certainly knew now that she was ready. She questioned whether or not this woman was even worthy of a reply. Scrolling down, she noticed someone had already taken the liberty to do so. Smirking as she read through TwoSwansaSwimming’s reply, she wasn’t sure what to make of it. It was quite sweet, if Regina were to be honest. At the same time, it slightly aggravated her that someone would step in to reply for her. Her aggravation dissipated as she reread her reply. She was a single mom. She must receive her fair share of objections as well. “I think you will be a fantastic mom.” Regina read over those words. For some odd reason, they made her feel as if she indeed would be. 

 

She concluded she would reply to both messages at once.

 

“Thank you, Natalie for that insightful input. I will have to consider your thoughtful reply when sending my child off to Harvard at 18. I’m sure sometime between him/her hugging me for raising them exceptionally well and moving into their new dorm room will I recall this judgmental reply from a complete stranger on a blog.”   
Regina laughed. She highly doubted her child would end up so perfectly well rounded and sweet, but it made for a comical defense.   
“TwoSwansaSwimming, I appreciate the vindication. I rarely see anyone come to my defense, and it was a refreshing reprieve to not have to verbally take down Natalie on my own. I would have to agree as well, love is all a child needs… and maybe a mom who will stand up for her title as a single parent (wink). Your son is very lucky to have you.   
MadameMayor.”

 

Regina clicked ‘reply’ and closed her mac book. On her drive home from work, she couldn’t help but notice how she had been losing her edge lately. Other than the snarky remark unnecessarily aimed at Kathryn (which she still felt horrible about), she seemed to be loosening up a bit.   
‘Well, for me..’ she supposed. 

 

‘Maybe it’s the possibility of becoming a mother that’s placating me? Either way, I think I quite like it.’ Finishing her thought with a smile, Regina made her way into the grand entrance of her home.

 

\----------

 

Emma felt her duvet shift. Squinting her eyes, she noticed the sunlight streaming in through her window. Then, giggling. Giggling and squirming. Emma smiled knowing exactly what was going on. Saturday morning at the Swan house. She rolled over to see Henry’s meager attempts at tickling his mom awake. She supposed his attempts actually worked. She was awake now. Laughing at her wake up call, she began tickling back.

 

“Gotcha now, kid!” She said while holding him down and tickling his stomach “You shouldn’t have started it!” 

 

“Okay.. okayyyy momma... STOOOPPP!” Henry could barely make out his words he was laughing so heavily and squirming around. 

 

“Okay I’m stopping… but only because you start to kick when I tickle and I don’t feel like taking one to the gut this morning..” she laughed.

 

Henry sighed thankful that the torture was over. “Mornin’ momma!” He said with a huge grin. 

 

“Good morning, kiddo.” Emma pulled him onto her lap. “Breakfast and Cartoons in our pj’s?” She asked with a grin. 

 

“Yeahhhhh!!” 

 

Emma laughed at his enthusiasm finding it so humorous he got so excited about that every Saturday. It was somewhat of a Saturday tradition for the past few years, but Henry seemed almost stunned every weekend that his mom would allow it. Emma shook her head softly and strolled after her son to the living room. Henry was already enjoying his maximum comfort level; the television set to Transformers, his plushy Avengers blanket wrapped around his little body (including his head) and his arms wrapped tightly around Mr. Fox. Henry was not budging, already entranced by the intro to the tv show. Emma laughed again at her son’s haste to get the Saturday morning ball rolling. She pulled out her phone.

 

‘I am so getting a picture of this cuteness before he moves.’ Snapping the photo, she was sure that would pull Henry out of his trance. No such luck. ‘What a stinker.’ she thought ‘I couldn’t love him more.’

 

“Alright, kid. How about breakfast?”

 

No response. 

 

“Kid? Food?”

 

Nada. Henry was fixated on the screen. 

 

“Hmmm.. I was going to make chocolate chip pancakes for breakfast but since you aren’t answering maybe I shouldn’t -”

 

“Chocolate chip panacakes! Really momma?!”

 

“He speaks?!!” Emma dramatically flung her hand over her heart in fake shock. 

 

Henry laughed “Oh momma, you silly. Can we still have chocolate chip panacakes pweese?”

 

“Mhhmm! Kiss first please!” Emma smirked. Henry launched himself at her, Avengers blanket and Mr. Fox both joining in. He sloppily kissed her cheek and hugged her for a moment before taking his place back on his couch throne. 

 

“Thanks kiddo, what a sweet kiss.” Emma laughed wiping her cheek “Enjoy your show and pancakes will be up in twenty minutes!”

 

\-----------

 

Emma couldn’t quite believe her eyes when she went to check on Henry before dinner to find that he was asleep in his bed. He absolutely never napped anymore. ‘It must have really taken a lot of out of him today.’ She blinked. 

 

After the chocolate chip pancakes, Emma speculated that the chocolate and syrup combination would only add to Henry’s naturally high energy levels. She decided a Saturday outing was called for. Emma washed the dishes followed by Henry’s sugary face. 

 

“So kid, want to go somewhere today?”

 

“Sure Momma! The park?” He questioned with a head tilt.

 

“Hmm.. I was thinking maybe somewhere more fun. Perhaps to see the dinosaurs?” Emma grinned. She knew her son was about to go bananas.

 

“Oh my gosh Momma REALLY?!” He was peering back at her with a hopeful smile and wide eyes.

 

“Yeah! Let’s go! C’mon!” Henry shouted the loudest ‘hooray’ she had heard since the last time they visited The Beaty Biodiversity Museum. Henry jumped from his chair and darted into his room to get ready. Dinosaurs were the be all and end all for Henry. The Avengers were a phase, just as Paw Patrol and Frozen had been… but dinosaurs had always been Henry’s real love. 

 

“Momma can I wear my dino hoodie?!” He held it up in hopes of persuading his mom. 

 

“Of course kiddo! What else would we wear today?” Emma zipped up his hoodie “All the way up momma!” Henry laughed.

 

“Okay stinker, all the way up, but only until we get to the museum.” The hoodie had an actual tyrannosaurus rex face printed on the hood. When zipped to the top, it covered Henry’s head, making the 5 year old appear like a T-Rex. He adored this hoodie. He, of course, immediately began stomping and growling as Emma ran “terrified” to the front door. Emma laughed and handed Henry his tennis shoes. “Alright Mr. Rex, shoes on please.” 

Henry sat on the bench to put his shoes on, trying with all his might to tie the laces. Getting frustrated, he huffed and hunched his shoulders. 

 

“Hey, it’s okay kid. I know we’ve been working on it but it takes time to learn. You’ll get it one day, okay?” Emma reassured him. Tying his shoes, he took her hand and jumped down off of the bench.

 

“Thanks momma... Now let’s gooooo!” he yelled, practically yanking her out of the house to enjoy their Saturday.

 

They had indeed enjoyed it. Seeing every skeleton from the blue whale to the brachiosaurus, then finished off with a children’s excavation class which Henry adored. Now that he was enjoying school more, Emma noticed how he had become more assertive in large groups his age. That overjoyed Emma. They stopped off for lunch at their favorite diner, ordering a grilled cheese with a side of fruit for both. After making it home, Emma asked Henry to change into his pajamas while she started dinner for that evening. She didn’t realize he was exhausted enough to fall asleep.

 

She smiled, cracked his door open and made her way back to the kitchen. With the crock pot on, she made herself a cup of cocoa and decided to enjoy the extremely rare mini break. Emma set her cocoa on the island and pulled up the stool. Opening her laptop, she decided to check out the blog again, remembering it had been a while. ‘That’s right, I ripped that Natalie girl a new one.’ she laughed, recalling her reply. Taking a sip of her hot chocolate and scrolling down to the reply, Emma noticed she wasn’t the only one anymore. 

 

‘Well shit. I thought my response was clever.’ she snickered. Rereading MadameMayor’s reply Emma laughed out loud, then covered her mouth in fear of waking Henry prematurely. 

‘The level of snark is spot on.’ she thought. The sarcastic comment was probably the most amusing one Emma had come across thus far on the site. She wasn’t exactly stunned. This Mayor woman had the most charmingly hilarious dry humor.

 

“Well MadameMayor, I was obviously mistaken in thinking my response couldn’t be topped. I tip my metaphorical hat to you. It seems you can hold your own and I am no longer needed here haha. Thank you for saying those kind words about my son, but I believe I am the lucky one. Have you stocked up on the diapers yet? It’s never too early (wink). Let me know if you need any more momma tips.  
P.s. why am I not surprised Natalie never replied to our posts? Ha.  
TwoSwansaSwimming.”

 

Emma grinned and sent her reply. She was lying to herself if she wasn’t personally hoping to see some more of MadameMayor’s snarky comments.

‘Maybe Natalie will be back for revenge and I’ll see some then’ she laughed. She finished her cocoa and checked the time. 5:45. Not wanting Henry to be up all hours of the night, she made her way to his room to wake him for dinner. 

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	7. Chapter 7

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone!
> 
> So sorry about the wait on this chapter. OITNB week has completely taken up my time lol.
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys :) And _hopefully_ Chapter 8 won't be too far behind 7.
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks for reading!

Regina paced around her study. She had been extensively researching adoption all day and the results didn’t seem to calm her now perpetual nerves. There were just so many factors to an adoption, Regina couldn’t help but question whether she would meet all of the requirements. The length of time was one factor. Apparently there is a pre-placement and post-placement waiting period. How long that would take, no one knew. The cost was another, obviously less worrisome point. Regina absolutely knew she could cover the cost of an adoption, especially a domestic adoption. She would pay whatever cost necessary for a family. There was an option to foster care for a child first, but Regina honestly didn’t know if her heart could handle possibly losing a child she had grown to love. 

 

‘Love’ she thought. ‘Such an infrequent word used in my vocabulary.’ she sighed. She had to be extremely careful with this process. She had been hurt and broken too many times, and a heartbreak from a child would be the end of her. Regina began to pace rapidly, thinking about the possibility of losing yet another person she loved.  
‘No. That won’t happen. This is why I am being careful and following the correct steps. I _will_ be a mother.’ Nodding firmly at her thoughts, she went over the few other steps to adopting. Regina would be allowed to somewhat choose her child, or possibly her child choosing her. She smiled, wondering what her baby or child would be like, look like, come to love in life. 

 

She would have to pass a home study. That thought brought her back to shaky hands. A homestudy sounded absolutely terrifying to the brunette. The idea of a social worker coming in her home to judge whether or not she was qualified to become a mother. The concept almost had a 5’4” Regina in a six foot pool of self doubt. The usual poised and self assured mayor found herself scrambling for her confidence when thinking about the process she may be going through in the near future. 

 

‘It is unquestionably worth all of this worry. I will be a mom one day; and I will the best mom possible. Adoption or IVF, it doesn’t matter..” She thought, giving her head a shake. “  
I will have a family.”

 

\----------

 

Later that evening, Regina gave up her pacing shoes for her slippers and sat in front of her fireplace. She was reading through East of Eden, cozied up with her faux fur throw and sipping her cup of earl grey. She placed her mug on it’s coaster and returned to her page, realizing then that she had been rereading the same paragraph for some time now. Her first instinct after her mild panic attack earlier had been to pour a very large shot of whiskey into a tumbler then hopefully fall asleep. Regina soon realized after that urge that if she were to become a mother, she would need to tone the drinking (or at least the shots of whiskey) down a notch. 

Sighing, she surmised she wasn’t going to get any further in her novel than planned. She placed it on the table next to her now cool earl grey mug of tea.  
‘Now what?’ she questioned. Her work for the week was more than caught up and the Fall Festival plans had been primed for days.  
‘I wish I had rescheduled the festival for _this_ weekend so I would have something to do.’ Snorting and then sighing again at her feeble thoughts, Regina rolled her eyes and grabbed her laptop. ‘I’m sure something will be entertaining on this thing. That’s partly what it’s for, right?’

 

Bringing up Netflix, she just started a documentary about a killer whale when she had a thought. 

 

‘CafeMom. I completely forgot..’ 

 

She closed Netflix and searched for her thread. She read through TwoSwansaSwimming’s reply, a smirk slowly creeping up on her face. ‘Finally, someone who appreciates my wit.’ 

 

_“TwoSwansaSwimming; It seems my dry humor amuses you. That is yet another rare occurrence in my life. You’re welcome for the kind words, but I still believe your son has an upstanding Mom. If you have any tips at all I’m all ears! I have been a bit overwhelmed this week by all of the prospects and uncertainties that seem to be tied to having a child. I suppose I have been over thinking some things, but this is something I never realized I’ve wanted for so long. I’ve wanted a baby, a family. Someone who’s face lights up when they see me; and mine when I see them. Anyway, I haven’t stocked up on diapers quite yet, no. It seems that I may already be behind, ha. P.S. How old is your son? MadameMayor.”_

 

Before she could even reread her message, the Mayor’s fingers clicked enter at their own accord. Regina gasped realizing what she had just typed was extremely personal. She couldn’t believe she had written those words, let alone sent them to a nearly complete stranger. 

“No no no no no…” she fretted, desperately trying to retrieve the words already sent through onto the web. Realizing there was no way to delete the message, she tossed her laptop aside and abruptly stood from the couch. “Dammit!” 

 

‘What was I thinking? Where did that even come from? Those are things I haven’t even admitted to myself yet. What did I say again .. someone who’s face lights up when they see me? Good lord, how desperate and sad does that sound.. Especially to a stranger. What is it about this woman that makes me emit such personal details?’ she pondered as she, again, paced.

 

Sighing, Regina realized there was nothing that could be done now. She had thoroughly embarrassed herself. ‘Maybe I just won’t go back on that website. I highly doubt she’d answer after that message, anyway…’

 

Pouring that tumbler of whiskey she valiantly rejected before, Regina made her way upstairs to take a long, hot bath. 

 

\-----------

 

It was a typical Sunday morning in the Swan house. Henry and his mom went on their morning pajama walk to their local bagelry. The tradition started a year ago; after one Sunday morning, Emma completely forgot to change Henry out of his pajamas before picking up their breakfast. She only realized when they arrived home that he was still in his batman pajama set with matching slippers. Henry had giggled at his mom’s snafu and challenged her to walk in her pj’s the next week to make it up to him. Emma made a deal that from then on, they would both wear pajamas for their Sunday morning strolls… with the condition of replacing slippers with shoes. Vancouver didn’t particularly go without it’s fair share of rain and snow. 

 

Arriving home and setting Henry up with his blueberry bagel and cream cheese, Emma popped hers into the toaster. 

 

“Alright kid, what’s on the schedule for today?”

 

“I don’t know momma, it’s up to you..” Henry said whilst shoveling a large bite of bagel into his mouth. 

 

Emma laughed “Henry, please take smaller bites.. That was bigger than mine..”

 

“No way mom! Your bites are huuuuuuggee” his replied after swallowing. 

 

“Gee, thanks kid” shaking her head with a smile. 

 

As Emma was waiting for her bagel and pouring coffee into her mug, a knock at the door sounded.  
“Mom someone’s here!” Henry exclaimed excitingly.  
“I know, kiddo I heard!” She laughed. Walking over to answer the door as her bagel popped from the toaster, she swung it open. 

 

“I heard there was someone that goes by the name of a Mr. Henry here?” Ruby said searching around the apartment as if she couldn’t see him.

 

“Aunt Rubyyy!” Henry immediately jumped from his chair and ran to the door. Ruby could hardly kneel down to his level before he crashed into her, nearly toppling them over. 

 

“Henry my gosh take it easy, kid! We want Aunt Ruby to survive the hugs..” Emma laughed 

 

Ruby was now standing holding a clinging Henry “Sorry Aunt Rubes..”

 

Both of the women laughed out loud at that term “Henry, since when do you call Aunt Ruby - Rubes?”

 

“You say it too momma! I like it!” 

 

Ruby laughed lowering Henry down onto his feet again “Aunt Rubes it shall be then!”

 

Henry ran back to the table, suddenly remembering his bagel and chocolate milk. 

 

“So what’s up Rubes? Want some breakfast? Coffee?” 

 

“Ugh, I’d love some actually, thanks.” Ruby jumped up onto one of the stools at the island as Emma handed her a steaming cup of coffee in her favorite mug. 

 

“Bagel?” Emma offered. 

 

“You know I’m going to say yes to that too.” Ruby laughed 

 

“Yeah I saw that coming..” Emma smirked “Plain bagel with strawberry cream cheese, coming up..”

 

Emma sliced Ruby’s bagel and placed it into the toaster. She brought her now prepared cinnamon raisin bagel and mug of coffee and sat next to Ruby at the island. 

 

“So, what’s up? You seem.. off today?” Emma hesitantly stated. 

Ruby was tracing her finger around the rim of the mug when it stopped. “How can you tell?”

 

“Rubes. Firstly, I believe you know of my superpower. I’m also your best friend. I know when something’s up...”

 

Ruby sighed and took a sip of her coffee. “You’re right. We broke up. You were right about him the whole time.”

 

“Jeremy? I’m so sorry, Rubes..” Emma sadly looked at her friend. Ruby was a wonderful girl and absolutely stunning, but had definite trouble in the dating department. Some would think she didn’t have the greatest judge of character. Emma concluded she was extremely trusting and loving, which if those qualities were given to the wrong person, caused issues. Issues typically resulting in a broken-hearted Ruby. 

 

“It’s fine, really..” Ruby said wiping her eyes “It was just time. He was unhappy, I was unhappy.. It’s cool..”

 

“Ruby…”

 

“Emma, really. It’s okay.” She looked up with a sad smile. “I honestly just was hoping to spend the day with you and the kid if that’s alright? I just don’t want to think about it... Not today..”

 

“Of course, Rubes. Of course.” Emma smiled back.

 

Just then, Henry’s voice brought them out of their reverie “Done momma! Can I watch The Land Before Time pweese?” Henry had been on a dinosaur kickstart since the museum visit yesterday. Not that he was never truly on one in the first place. 

 

Emma turned around, “Of course, kiddo.. Yeah..” She hopped off the chair to grab his plate and turn on Netflix for him. 

 

“Is Aunty Ruby okay, momma? He whispered very carefully so only she could hear.

Emma looked back up at him, stunned yet again by his level of perception at such a young age. “Y-yeah kid. She’s fine.” she smiled “She’s just having a tough day.. We’re going to try to make it a little better for her.. Does that sound like a plan?”

 

“Yeah! Good plan momma!” he whispered a bit too loudly this time not being able to control his excitement at the prospect of cheering his Aunt up.

 

“Okay Mr., you watch a little of your movie while Aunt Ruby and I finish breakfast, and then we can go to the park.” 

 

“Yesss!” she heard Henry exclaim as she walked back to her newly heartbroken best friend. 

 

\-----------

 

“Catch me Auntie Rubes!” Henry yelled as he flew down the spiral slide for the 72nd time in a row. Slides were always a hit for the 5 year old.

 

“Got ya!” Ruby yelled back as she grabbed him from the bottom and began tickling his belly. 

 

Emma was smiling from the bench as she watched her best friend and son playing. They had been at Charleson Park for the past hour or so. They walked around a bit while Henry rode his bike; he was beginning to learn how to ride without training wheels. It was somewhat tumultuous with Emma and Ruby running after him to ensure he didn’t fall. They now found themselves at the playground and Emma wondered how they were ever going to get Henry off of it now. Emma laughed to herself, honestly loving how energetic her little boy was. At least it kept things interesting, and she got a workout in the process. Henry ran back over to her with Ruby lagging behind. She was steadily losing the energy needed to keep up with the kiddo. 

 

“Momma! Can Aunt Rubes and I go get an ice cream pweese?” Pointing to the ice cream truck on the other side of the park. 

 

Thinking it was an especially warm day today, Emma glanced up at Ruby as she made her way up to her “Sure kid, as long as it’s okay with your Aunt Ruby it’s okay with me!”

 

“It was actually my idea, but I told Henry to ask his momma first… would you like anything?”

 

“I’m good actually, thanks guys” she smiled, handing them cash.

 

Ruby gently pushed it back “No way, Ems. It’s on me.” she winked.

 

“Thanks Rubes… Henry, calm down a little on the energy, kiddo. Don’t run Aunt Ruby ragged.. And be sure to grab extra napkins for the inevitable drippy chin..” she winked at him and kissed his cheek.

 

“Hey, I resent that! I have tons of energy left to keep up with the little man!” Ruby said side eyeing Emma.

 

“Mhmmm okay..” Emma winked again. 

 

“Let’s go Aunt Rubes! I want banilla. No, chocwate. No!! I got it! Banilla and chocwate!” Henry nodded proudly at his newly discovered combination.

 

The girls looked at each other laughing at his certainty as Henry began making his way to the ice cream parlour; grabbing onto Ruby’s hand as he went. 

 

Emma sat on the bench watching them go. She was so lucky to have those two in her life. Shaking her head at her thoughts lately, she knew she truly shouldn’t ask for more. ‘A significant other can wait a bit… I’m just so happy I have a supportive friend and a beautiful son right now. Lord knows I never had anything or anyone before Henry came into my life..’ A ping sounded through her phone, shaking her from her thoughts. It was Ruby.

 

“Henry wanted me to let you know we can still see you, lol. He’s still making a flavour decision.” she sent with a laughing emoji.

 

Emma glanced up laughing now “Tell him I can see him too, the stinker… and tell him he should get maple pecan (wink emoji).”

 

“He said … ‘Momma! No way that’s YOUR favorite!’… he went with chocolate vanilla like originally planned. Haha.”

 

Emma laughed again, closing her texts. Taking a moment to look through her other notifications, the blonde saw a new message in her CafeMom inbox. MadameMayor. Curiosity got the best of her. Emma quickly opened her newly downloaded app, guessing that Ruby and Henry would be a few more minutes. 

 

Reading over MadameMayor’s reply, Emma didn’t even realize there were small tears in her eyes until one slowly descended. She wasn’t certain what got to her, but something about this woman’s words affected Emma.  
‘She’s usually just so snarky.. I was not expecting that..’  
Quickly wiping the tear away, she read over her words once again before replying. 

 

_“MadameMayor, I couldn’t imagine anyone not finding that type of wit humorous? It’s so rare to find anyone with spot-on sarcasm. Anyway, I thought it was pretty hilarious and it kind of made my day. Ha. I definitely have some tips for you.. I may not know quite as much as some other moms, but my son is five.. So I have been through the baby and toddler stages if you need any info on that age group. It’s honestly mostly just sleepless nights, a ton of spit up, some tantrums and potty training. With fun and laughter in between of course haha. It’s a challenge but oh-so-worth it. I’m still figuring out the five year old stage so I apologize that I may not be too helpful if you plan on adopting a kid older than that. Thank you, yet again for complimenting me as a mom. I think I can understand your fears. I would do absolutely anything for my son. Not to be morbid, but I would honestly die for him. His happiness is mine. So yes, I understand why you are feeling overwhelmed. Becoming a mother was truly the greatest, but most terrifying thing I’ve ever taken on. You have an ear if you want to chat about that. I am extremely lucky to have him. I know you will feel the same way when you have your baby or kid… and that kid will be lucky to have you, too. TwoSwansaSwimming._

_P.s. don’t worry about those diapers.. Pretty soon, you’ll be swimming in them haha.”_

 

“Hey mom can we go see the jelly beans after this!?” 

 

Emma jolted her face toward Henry’s voice not knowing how long he and Ruby had been standing there. By the curious eyebrow raise on Ruby’s face, sometime now. Emma quickly pressed send and pocketed her phone. 

 

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	8. Chapter 8

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello Fellow Readers :)
> 
> I hope everyone has had a nice weekend.
> 
>  
> 
> Some of you may have guessed what would be happening in this chapter... But here it is anyway! Ha
> 
>  
> 
> Thanks again for all of your lovely comments and kudos! Enjoy x

\-------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Chapter 8

 

Charleson Park was well known for the giant bean-shaped sculptures. Kids and adults alike would climb on them and take photos. It was also just a nice area of the park to relax and look at the boats pass as Henry ran off his ice cream-induced energy. 

 

“Uh, sure kid! We can go see the jelly beans after ice cream… How is it anyway?” Emma finally answered.

 

“Deeeelish momma!” Henry smiled at her with a ring of melted chocolate and vanilla ice cream around his mouth. Emma laughed and grabbed a couple of the napkins Henry so politely remembered. By Henry, she meant Ruby. 

 

“Okay kid, let’s wipe that mouth and finish up. Then we can ride your bike over to the beans. Sound good?”

 

“Mhmmm!” Henry was too focused on finishing his cone to answer with an actual word. 

 

As they were walking (Henry, riding) down the path to the giant jelly beans, Emma noticed Ruby staring at her out of the corner of her eye. 

 

“What Rubes?” she said nonchalantly.

“What do you mean, what. You literally took twelve minutes to notice us standing in front of you back there… and Henry and I aren’t exactly the quietest people..” she laughed “What was on your phone that was so intriguing? Is everything alright?”

 

“Of course everything is alright.. You know I would tell you if not..”

 

“Okay.. I thought I saw you crying and.. I just want to be sure my boyfriend - or, non boyfriend - issues from today aren’t keeping you from talking to me. No matter what else is happening in my life.. I’m still your best friend..”

 

Emma smiled fondly at Ruby. “Of course. Of course I know that Rubes. I’m so lucky to have you. I’m so sorry I haven’t asked how you’re feeling. Bad friend status..” she tapered off. “How are you feeling now? Is spending the day with Henry and I helping at all?” 

 

Ruby smiled back “It’s perfectly fine, Em. I get it.. We’ve had a busy day with the little guy. I’m actually okay. Henry is such a cheerful distraction from my failing love life… and you.. It’s always my favorite thing to do, spending time with my best friend..” she nudged Emma’s shoulder. 

 

Emma grinned back at Ruby knowing she was in agreement with that statement. “Thanks, Rubes. Right back at ya. Henry and I are always here for you.”

 

After an emotional best friend hug and a thank you from Ruby, the girls followed Henry to help him up onto the giant blue jelly bean statue. 

 

\----------

 

“I’m so sorry to tell you this, Regina, but it seems as though you are unfit to carry a child.”

 

Regina’s tears fell for maybe the hundredth time since hearing that sentence. Actually, she guessed they hadn’t even stopped from that moment on. She curled up further into her blanket and pillows and groaned, wishing they could somehow comfort her mind as well. She wasn’t even sure of the time.. Dinner time maybe? It was getting dark out. Regina didn’t care. She was  
heartbroken. Again. 

 

That Monday morning, Regina strolled into work, happy to begin her week. Her weekend was somewhat a strange combination of overwhelming and boring. She was relieved to get back to work. This was where she was most comfortable and confident. 

 

“Good morning, Kathryn” she smiled as she approached her office.

 

“Good morning, Mayor Mills. I hope you had a nice weekend.”

 

“It was fine, thank you. You?”

 

Kathryn was yet again stunned. She wasn’t accustomed to the brunette asking her about her weekends. Ever. “I-It was great, yes. Thank you for asking.” she smiled. 

 

“That’s good to hear..” Regina walked past, opening her office door to start her morning. “..what’s on the books for today then?”

 

\----------

 

Regina signed the bottom of a planning proposal for the construction of a new apartment building on Main Street. It seems that the population of the quaint town of Storybrooke was on the rise this year and Mr. Gold was hoping to capitalize on that.  
‘That morning flew by’ she realized as she checked the time, reading 12:30 pm. Just as she was deciding on whether to take a lunch break or finish a little more paperwork, her office phone rang. 

 

“Good afternoon, Mayor Mills speaking.”

 

“Good afternoon, Miss Mills. This is Dr. Whale from Storybrooke Hospital and Clinic.”

 

Regina tensed “Yes, Dr. Whale, h-hello. Did you receive the results?” she swallowed. 

 

“Miss Mills, I would prefer to speak to you in person if that is alright? Are you available at any point today?” Dr. Whale asked politely. 

 

“Y-yes. Yes, I’m available. I can come down now actually.. I-If that’s alright?”

 

“That’s perfectly fine, Miss Mills. Take your time.”

 

“Thank you, Dr. Whale. I will see you shortly.” 

 

Regina hung up the phone and grabbed her trench coat. Rushing out of the office, she speedily asked Kathryn to hold all of her calls with a promise she would be back soon. Kathryn barely had time to nod her head as she watched Regina disappear behind the elevator doors. 

 

\----------

 

“Not fit to carry a child? What does that mean exactly? What’s wrong?” Regina questioned from the chair in Dr. Whale’s office.

 

Dr. Whale looked up at her, seeing her sorrowful expression. “It seems that your body does not produce healthy eggs. Without a healthy egg, there will most likely be no conception. In a chance of conception, there is still a great risk that the pregnancy will not hold full term. That is something I cannot recommend to any patient. I am so sorry, Miss Mills.”

 

Regina seemed stunned by this information; now a combined look of shock and sorrow on her face. “I-Is there anything I can do? Did I do something wrong?”

“Of course not, no..” Dr. Whale shook his head “You are not at fault in any way, Miss Mills. It is just a natural occurrence. There are still some options for you out there. If you still want to give birth, there is the option of using a donor’s eggs to carry out the pregnancy..”

 

Regina cleared her throat and shook her head lightly “No. No, that won’t be necessary Dr. Whale. I will take this as a sign that adoption is how I’m meant to start my family. Thank you for your time..” she stood and extended her hand. 

 

Dr. Whale took it into his, shaking it gently “You’re very welcome, Miss Mills. I’m sorry I couldn’t do more. Please let me know if you change your mind in the future and I wish you luck in your adoption.”

 

Regina composed herself and wiped her few tears that fell, internally ridiculing herself for crying in front of her doctor. She nodded his direction with a small smile and quickly made her way out of his office. Briskly walking to her car, she couldn’t stop her tears from falling.

 _‘Of course I can’t carry a child. Mother always told me I was a failure, always reminding me to do better. Well didn’t that just prove her right. Once again.’_  
Regina sat in the driver’s seat letting the tears fall. _‘She would be so disappointed in me… I’m disappointed in myself..’_  
Her thoughts trailed off with more tears to guide them. Wiping her tears with a tissue, she decided to call Kathryn. She certainly wouldn’t be getting any more work done today.

 

Kathryn hung up the phone with a bewildered expression. The Mayor had called in moments ago saying she was going to work from home for the rest of the day. That wouldn’t normally be a cause for concern if she hadn’t sounded so incredibly heartbroken. Mayor Mills usually sounded composed and to the point, especially to Kathryn. She now wondered what on Earth could have broken the Mayor within the last hour. 

_‘She seemed fine earlier, even happy. The rush out of the office was a bit strange for her I guess.. Something definitely happened when she was out. Should I ask her tomorrow? No. This is her business and I’m her employee. I just feel like I should help somehow.. She doesn’t have many friends it seems..’_ Kathryn sadly thought. _‘No family either. If so, she never mentioned anyone in the past few years...and they certainly have never shown up here. She must be so lonely..’_ Kathryn frowned. _‘I’m going to start befriending her. Everyone needs someone in their life.’_

 

Nodding at her final thought, Kathryn used the remaining hours of work to finish anything the Mayor may need done for the following day. 

 

…...

 

Regina rolled over and checked the bedside clock: 5:45 am. Groaning again, she sat up and rubbed her hands over her face. Coffee. She needed coffee. She rolled out of her bed, realizing she was still in her pantsuit from yesterday. She shrugged off her clothes and made her way into her bathroom. Concluding she had time for a bath before work, Regina ran the water as she went downstairs for her much needed cup of coffee. She tiredly waited for the coffee to brew before pouring it into her mug and trudging back upstairs; finally sinking into the steamy bath with a sad sigh. She laid her head back onto the back of the bath and closed her now swollen eyes. Taking a deep breath, she began thinking back to yesterday.

 

 _‘I just can’t believe it… I can never have a baby. I just.. I know adoption is still a wonderful opportunity, but I can’t help but worry if that will even happen for me. It seems as though I’m cursed in some way. I will never find my happiness, will I?..’_ Letting out a sob, Regina sank under the suds to wash away her tears.

\----------

 

Emma tossed in her bed for what was probably the 58th time in the last four minutes. Huffing, she sat up not realizing why. 

_’What is wrong with me, jeez. Henry is fine, Ruby is feeling better, work is going well… it’s nearly one am and I’ve usually been asleep for two hours by now..’_ she trailed off. Rolling her eyes and realizing the tossing and turning was obviously not doing the trick, she got up to make herself a cup of tea. Hot chocolate was her preferred poison, but the sugar was probably not going to help sleep come either. 

 

She picked up the kettle, pouring the boiling water onto her teabag. Hopefully a little chamomile would relax her mind. Moving over to the couch with her book, she set her mug down onto the table and opened _East of Eden_ to her previous page. She got about halfway through the next page before she realized she had indeed been reading over the last paragraph again and again. Rolling her eyes again and dropping her book, she opened her laptop hoping that would do the trick to ease her mind. Emma logged onto her Facebook page, scrolling through the monotonous posts. 

_‘Ugh, Claire. No one cares about your diet and exercise regimen… we don’t all have time to ‘meal prep’.._ she mumbled, rolling her eyes again. 

_‘Okay Facebook obviously isn’t helping either.’_ Emma rubbed her face and looked out of the window. _‘I could use a little of MayorMill’s humorous sarcasm right about now..’_

 

On that note, Emma opened up CafeMom.com to see if her last message was answered. She had this sudden urge to check on the Mayor’s well being.. (But she disguised that with an excuse to read through hopefully another witty comment.) ‘Nothing..’ she mumbled. The Mayor hadn’t written back. _‘That’s weird, it’s been nearly a week… she usually responds overnight. Maybe she’s busy.. She is the Mayor..’_ her thoughts trailed off. 

 

She shook her head. _‘What the hell, Emma.. creeper much? Why do I care so much..’_

 

Emma was suddenly startled by a sound in the hallway, jerking her head toward the noise. 

 

“Momma? I-Is everything okay?” Henry was standing in his new Halloween pajamas rubbing his little eyes. 

 

“Henry! Good Lord, kid you scared me..what are you doing up?”

 

“Sorry momma… I just had to go potty..”

 

Emma closed her laptop and stood from the couch “It’s okay kiddo.. Let’s get you back to bed huh?..”

 

Emma lead Henry back to his bed to tuck him under the covers for the second time tonight.

 

“Mom? Can we read one more story?” He looked up with hopeful puppy-dog eyes.

 

Emma smirked “So, we’re using the puppy-dog eyes huh? You know you’re only allotted 12 of those a year..” she laughed tucking the blanket under his chin.

Henry returned her smirk with a huge grin. “Oh, I know momma… I have three still saved up  
from last year.” 

 

“Oh yeah?! Stinker..” Emma tickled Henry as he let out a surprised shriek.

 

“Okay, mister.. Which book?” she walked over to his bookshelf.

 

“That one mom!” Henry pointed to a large tome on the top shelf.

 

Emma smiled “Alright kiddo.. But just one story from it.. There are way too many in here to fit in tonight.” 

 

Emma sat next to Henry and opened _Once Upon a Time._

 

“The one about Snow White, Momma.. It’s my favorite..”

 

Emma smiled again and ran her hand through his floppy brown hair, kissing his head. “Snow White and the Seven Dwarves it is..”

 

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	9. Chapter 9

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello lovely readers! Thank you for all of the kudos and comments <3 
> 
>  
> 
> I am so sorry this took me so long to update!
> 
> I'm trying my best to keep it more regular.. but work has been a bit hectic lately.
> 
>  
> 
> Anyway, I hope everyone enjoys this next chapter :)
> 
> (#softregina feels coming your way)
> 
>  
> 
> Xxx

\--------------------------------------------------------------------

 

Children were running around the pumpkin patch, some with painted faces, pointing excitedly toward the pumpkins they wanted to bring home to carve. There were tents and tables stocked full of warm apple cider, caramel apples and popcorn. Hay rides had commenced around noon, taking families through a path in the woods to the very back of the large pumpkin patch. A large pumpkin-shaped bouncy castle was placed in the midst; children of all ages jumping and falling over. Families were laughing together, carrying their pumpkins or bags of apples back to their cars. The weather was beautiful and breezy, with the sun peeking through the cumulus clouds. The scene was heartwarming; almost something out of a movie. 

 

Which was the same exact reason Regina felt the need to _run_ back home. 

 

She had been in the town center’s park for a few hours now, verifying that everything was going according to plan. The Fall Festival was the second largest event in Storybrooke, behind the Christmas Light show. Regina knew this weekend had to go without a hitch. Of course.. it undoubtedly had.  
Everything was flowing smoothly; the food and drinks were stocked, the live band was on schedule, the events were all a success so far, and there were still hundreds of pumpkins available for families who hadn’t made it there yet. The children were having a wonderful time.. parents and grandparents having an even better time, watching them so happily entertained with the festivities.  
So why did Regina feel the need to run? She supposed knew exactly why. Jealousy, envy, resentment...whatever she wanted to call it. She just knew she didn’t have a family - a child, to share this weekend with. It was breaking her to watch the sheer joy surrounding her when she felt turmoil. Standing from the bench and severing her perfect view of the festivities, she tossed her remaining apple cider into the trash and decided to make her way back home. 

 

In the scheme of things, she shouldn’t have been at all surprised when someone suddenly slammed into her legs. Regina smiled.. She didn’t even need to look down to know who the culprit was. 

 

“H-Hi again Madame Mayor..” Lucas waved hesitantly, expecting the Mayor to once again be angered by his clumsiness. Little did he know, Regina was just elated to see him. Also, the irony was not lost on her.. Knowing that this was apparently their friendly version of a ‘meet cute’. 

 

“Well, hello mister Lucas..” she grinned “How nice to see you. Are you enjoying the Fall Festival?” Just then she realized Lucas had been carrying a small round pumpkin. It must have been the one he chose from the patch. 

 

“I am, yeah! It’s so much fun here, isn’t it!? I went on the bouncy castle and painted some mini pumpkins and had a caramel apple with peanuts… oh! And rode on the hayride! That was my _favorite_..” He exclaimed with wide eyes. 

 

Regina couldn’t hold in her laugh, thinking this boy was just too adorable. “That’s so great! I’m so glad you are enjoying it, Lucas. Is that the pumpkin you picked out?”

 

“Yep! I think I got the best one but don’t tell the other kids..” He whispered, giving his all into an attempted wink. 

 

Regina smiled “Your secret is safe with me..” she winked back. “Lucas?”

 

“Yeah?” 

 

“Honey, where are your parents?” She said glancing around with her hand shielding her eyes from the sun.

 

“They’re right there Miss Mills..” He pointed to the barn as she saw a couple emerge with a jug of cider and a bag of apples. 

 

Regina squinted trying to see who exactly Lucas was talking about. As the couple walked closer and she could finally make out who they were, she couldn’t believe it. 

 

“Kathryn!?” 

 

“Hi Madame Mayor!” Kathryn waved “Lucas I’m so glad you were with Mayor Mills, but please don’t run off like that again. Even in our small town.. it’s dangerous okay?”

 

“Sorry mom” Lucas looked up sadly “It’s just I’ve already met Miss Mills so I thought…”

 

“You two met?” Kathryn questioned

 

“Lucas is your son?” The Mayor questioned. 

 

They both laughed out loud, not believing the circumstance. 

 

“Where on Earth did you two meet?” Kathryn smiled

 

“At school, mom… I accidentally ran into Miss Mills.. Twice..” he glanced up at her wearily. “But she was nice about it..” he smiled up at Regina.

 

Regina glanced back down with a watery smile “Yes, indeed. Lucas is such a lovely boy.. with a tendency of running into me once in awhile.. Quite literally..” she laughed winking at Lucas. “Kathryn, why didn’t you ever mention you had a son?” she questioned. 

 

“I-I’m not sure.. I suppose he just never came up and.. The hours I spend at work, he spends at school. I’m sorry if it seems-”

 

“No, not at all.. It’s completely fine. I understand. I’m not exactly the easiest person to talk to…” Regina trailed off.

 

Kathryn sadly smiled back, knowing that to be true. She didn’t care, though. Regina was kind and caring.. she was just misunderstood. Knowing now that her son got along well with her, Kathryn definitely wanted to make a friend out of Regina. Heck, the way her son was looking up at her it seemed like he was somewhat enamored. Kathryn laughed at her little boy rolling her eyes. She surmised it was going to be tough; cracking through the hard shell Regina carried on her back. Again, she didn’t really care..she already came to the absolute conclusion that the Mayor needed a friend. 

 

“Well. I think it’s time I head back home… the festivities took a lot out of me..” Regina turned her head toward her car. “But it was lovely to see you again, Lucas. Kathryn, and?..”

 

“Oh my gosh I am so sorry!” Kathryn hit her head with her hand “This is my husband, Frederick..”

 

Frederick, Regina and Lucas all laughed while Kathryn stood utterly embarrassed that she forgot to introduce her husband to the Mayor.

 

“Lovely to meet you as well, Frederick..” Regina smiled and shook his hand.

 

“Thank you Madame Mayor.. It’s an honor to finally meet you too. You did an amazing job with the festival this year, as always. We had a wonderful time..” He smiled releasing her handshake. 

 

“Thank you very much. I couldn’t have done it without Kathryn’s help.” 

 

Kathryn smiled at Regina, then at Frederick. “Thank you.”

 

Regina nodded “Enjoy the rest of your weekend, you three. Watch out for all of those walking legs, Mr. Lucas..” she winked, ruffling his blonde hair. 

 

“I’ll try Miss Mills.. I’ll see you later!” Lucas beamed.

 

Regina smiled fondly, thinking there was a minimal chance of that. She waved and turned to walk back to her Mercedes. Before she could unlock her door, she heard Kathryn running behind her calling her name. She turned around at the sound of footsteps slowing. 

 

“Madame Mayor.. I um..” Kathryn started “I just wanted to ask if you’re busy tomorrow? Frederick and Lucas and I usually have a small pumpkin carving party at our house the day after the festival. Would you maybe be interested in coming?” 

 

To say Regina was stunned was an understatement. She stood slack jawed for a moment ..before realizing that Kathryn was waiting patiently for an answer. 

 

“I’m sorry if that was pushing a line, I-” Kathryn suddenly blurted 

 

“No! No, I… I would love to!” Regina exclaimed with a bit too much enthusiasm for her own comfort level.. She cleared her throat. “Thank you. What time and where?”

 

Kathryn grinned, happy Regina accepted the invitation. “Here, I’ll write down our address for you..” Kathryn grabbed a pen and paper from her purse, handing the address to the Mayor. “And truly, anytime.. But we usually start carving around two or so..” she finished. 

 

“I-I don’t have a pumpkin?” Regina looked around as if one would magically appear.

 

“Oh, that’s alright.. We always have spare! Frederick already has five at home it’s like he’s some kind of pumpkin collector..” she laughed rolling her eyes. 

 

Regina laughed back, then smiled. “Thank you again, Kathryn. I will see you tomorrow afternoon.”

 

“See you tomorrow.” Kathryn waved, running back to her family. 

 

Regina started her car, driving home again with tears welled up under her lashes.  
This time, they were happy tears.

 

\----------

 

_“It set him free.” Said Lee. “It gave him the right to be a man, separate from any other man.”_  
“That’s lonely.”  
“All great and precious things are lonely.” 

 

Regina closed her eyes and raised her head from her book. 

 

She opened her robe wrapped around her, airing herself out. It was suddenly too hot and Regina felt stifled. She stood from the couch and walked into the kitchen for a glass of water.  
It had been a few hours since coming home from the festival and Regina decided to spend the rest of her evening relaxing by the fireplace with her novel. With her temperature now rising all of the sudden, she grabbed her laptop and made her way onto her back porch. Regina descended into her adirondack chair and looked up at the stars. Closing her eyes again, she felt the calm breeze flow around her and listened to the sound of the leaves falling. She smiled. Everything was going to be alright. She just knew. 

 

Opening her laptop, she decided to check on the forum once more. Regina vaguely remembered earlier that day that she hadn’t signed in for some time now. She wasn’t exactly expecting a message back, but she figured now was the perfect time to do some research specifically on adoption.

Logging in to her account, she scrolled down to the bottom of her messages… laughing once more that Natalie had indeed still not responded. Then, she saw it. A message from _TwoSwansaSwimming_ nearly a week ago. That was somewhat surprising. Regina felt the slight guilt take over for a moment before she realized this Swan woman probably was just being kind to her. There was an extremely small chance she actually wanted to even hear back from the Mayor. 

 

‘She’s probably hoping I’ll just end the messages with a smile emoji or something..’ Regina giggled. ‘What is _wrong_ with me, why do I keep giggling…’ she rolled her eyes and began reading the message. 

 

“I made her day?” she whispered to herself, looking up. She blinked and continued reading. 

 

“She thinks my kid will be lucky..” she whispered again, only her ears hearing the words.

 

Regina felt her eyes well up with tears for a moment before shaking from her reverie. ‘Her son is five.. That’s close to Lucas’s age. It seems like a lovely age..’ she thought. ‘Maybe I should consider adopting an older child? It seems from her message, skipping the toddler stage wouldn’t be all that bad..’ she chuckled.  
‘And there are so many older children without homes..’  
Regina looked back down and surmised she had waited long enough to answer the message. She was about to begin typing when she realized something.. All of these messages were on a public thread. Not wanting to spill anymore personal details about her life to strangers, (especially, Natalie) Regina clicked on TwoSwansaSwimming‘s profile. Finding her private message icon, Regina clicked on it to open a new message. She felt a glimmer of doubt, wondering if she was, again being too personal. She shook away the feeling and went ahead, undeterred. 

 

_“TwoSwansaSwimming,_

_Before I reply to your last message, I was hoping that replying through your personal message box would be alright? We seem to be the only two speaking on the thread, and I honestly was hoping to keep some of my private life off of the public forum. At least before I continue to allow my blabbermouth to run away with me. I believe the people I know outside of this thread would be shocked to see how much personal information I’ve already divulged. I’m somewhat of a misanthrope (I know, shocking..)_

_Anyway, I digress. Believe it or not, some people in my town indeed find my sense of sarcastic undertone annoying. I am, although, very grateful that it seemed to make your day. I’ll try my best to keep the wit polished and ready.  
Your son is five? That’s such a lovely age. Five seems like the age of compassion, diligence and stubbornness. At least, that’s how it seems with my friend’s son. He’s darling, but can be very sneaky (wink emoji).. And slightly clumsy.”_

_Either way, I have absolutely no doubts whatsoever it is worth it. You are very blessed to have your son. I hope I one day can be so lucky. Although, after that message I am curious whether or not I should skip the toddler stage and look into adopting an older child (laugh emoji).  
That is so very noble of you to say about your son.. Believe me, not every parent would concur. _

_I hope as he grows older, he will acknowledge how wonderful his mother is.  
Lastly, I wanted to apologize for the late reply this week. It was somewhat of a rough week and..”_

 

Regina glanced up again. ‘She _did_ say I had an ear if I wanted to talk..’ she queried.

 

_“...and I, for the most part felt quite low. Do you remember how I mentioned in the original message that I was hoping to either adopt or give birth through IVF? It turns out that, unfortunately the option of giving birth.. is no longer on the table. My doctor informed me on Monday.. And I suppose I just didn’t have the strength for much of anything after that._

_I am feeling a bit better now and looking forward to beginning the adoption process. Here’s to having luck on my side. Apologies once more for the delayed reply (and the inevitable word vomit that seems to flow when I am typing said-replies)._

_MadameMayor.”_

 

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	10. Chapter 10

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> WOW everyone I am SO SORRY about this long wait. 
> 
> I will do my absolute best to put another update up this weekend! But for now, I hope this is enough to salve everyone.
> 
>  
> 
> Love you all and Please enjoy! Xoxo

\---------------------------------------Chapter 10----------------------------------------

 

 

Henry ran inside, yanking off and throwing his rain boots in the vicinity of the bench. Before he could make it to the couch with his bagel and cream cheese, his mom bellowed.

 

“Henry Daniel Swan! Is that how we leave our shoes?” giving him a stern look. 

 

Henry swiveled on his feet with a frown “Sorry Mom..” He picked his shoes up, placing them neatly under the bench. 

 

“Thank you… you know better than that, mister..” Emma walked by him with a questioning gaze.   
Henry looked up at her with an apologetic smirk, knowing he indeed knew better. 

 

“C’mon, kid.. Bagel time..” Emma added the cream cheese to Henry’s blueberry bagel and placed it on his lap on the couch, receiving a thank you from her son. 

 

“So what’s the movie choice for this morning?” she asked

 

“Hmmm..” Henry looked up in concentration with his little finger tapping at his chin in thought. Emma laughed not believing her son could get much cuter. “The Land Before Time II Momma!”

 

Emma groaned and fell back on the couch next to him “Kiddd.. That was the same movie from last night.. And Friday night.. And Thursday night..” 

Following that statement, Emma made a mental note to calm it down on the t.v. watching. Henry was usually only allowed three movies a week or so. 

 

“Pleaasse Momma?.. It’s my favowite!”

 

“Henry Swan if you use those puppy dog eyes one more time…” she side eyed him and clicked play on his redundant movie choice. 

 

“Yay thanks mom!” Henry smiled and took a large bite of his bagel. Emma grinned at her little stinker of a son before getting up for her own bagel. 

 

“So, how are you liking school now that it’s been a month kid?” she questioned while spreading the cream cheese generously on her bagel.

 

Henry turned to his mom’s voice in the kitchen “I love it momma! It’s my favowite place besides at home with you!”

 

Emma laughed “Well that’s good to know! I’m still #1 huh?” she nudged him as she lowered herself onto the couch. Emma pulled the blanket up, setting it on their laps under their plates.

 

“Always mom..” he smirked “I don’t get to eat bagels with my Avengers blanket on the couch at school..” 

 

She laughed again. “True.. but you do get to have fun, make arts & crafts, learn your colors and numbers..”

 

“And see Miss Blanchard!” he exclaimed.

 

“And see Miss Blanchard..” she smiled. “Well I’m glad you’re loving it now, sweetheart. Remember if you ever need to talk about anything..”

 

“I know, momma.. I pwomise. I don’t even need to squeeze Mr. Fox anymore! I only did it once last week..” he trailed off, focusing back on his movie.

 

“That’s great baby boy..” Emma smiled sadly as she smoothed down his hair with her left hand. Realizing her baby was growing up quickly, she swiped the tears from under her eyes before Mr. Perceptive took notice. She cleared her throat and stood “I’m just going to make some coffee kiddo, be right back..”

 

“Okay momma..”

 

While waiting for the coffee to brew and watching Henry snuggled up on the couch, Emma glanced down at her phone for the first time that morning. A text from Ruby, a few emails from work and Henry’s school.. And to her surprise, a notification on CafeMom. Emma smiled knowing who that was. Her smile disappeared upon remembering how long it had been since she heard from MadameMayor. ‘I hope everything is alright..’ she pondered. Deciding to check the message when Henry was sleeping later tonight, Emma went through her emails and text from Ruby. The emails were just notifications of upcoming events, both for work and Henry’s school. A wedding at the Fairmont, and autumn festivities at the school for the month of October. Emma closed her emails, deciding she would read them later. She opened the text from Ruby:

 

“Hey girl, wondering if you and the kid have any plans for today? I could use a fun outing with my favorite Swans..”

 

Emma smiled, reading the time she sent that. 9:03. She glanced back at the clock.. Now 9:48. 

 

“Hey Rubes.. No plans for today! Henry would love an outing I’m sure.. momma Swan wouldn’t mind either lol. Movie?” Emma glanced outside watching the rain fall harder than before and remembering the rainy streets they trudged through on the way to the bakery. It was a good thing she decided to grab an umbrella last minute on their way out. They’d probably have to keep their activities inside today. 

 

“A movie sounds awesome! What time is good for you guys?” 

 

“Let me check the movies out and I’ll get back to you..” Emma googled their neighborhood movie theater to bring up times. “How does Moana at 12:30 sound?” sending the link to Ruby “Maybe we can grab lunch after?”

 

Ruby replied seconds later “That’s perfect! I’m so in the mood for Disney today.. I’ll meet you at 12:15 in front of the theater.”

 

Emma pocketed her phone with a smile and poured her now brewed coffee in her mug. She strolled back over to Henry to see that his plate was now empty sans a few crumbs. Grabbing it off his lap and tossing it into the sink, she gulped her coffee and sat on the couch next to him.

 

“So kid, want to see a movie today?” 

 

He glanced up at her questioningly. “We are watching a movie right now momma?” 

 

Emma laughed out loud “Well, that’s true.. But I meant in a theater. Do you want to go see Moana with Auntie Rubes today?”

 

Henry went slack jawed for a moment before an enormous grin took over his little face “Really Momma? Yeah! Let’s go!” 

 

“Hold up, kid.. We need a bath this morning after splashing in that mud.. Don’t worry, the movie is in a few hours okay?”

 

“Okay mom .. yayy! I’ve been wanting to see Moana for forever!” Emma smiled and rolled her eyes at her melodramatic son. By ‘forever’, he meant for the last month or so. It was only released in theaters in August. Henry hopped up from the couch and bolted for the bathroom as if hurrying his bath meant the movie would suddenly have an earlier start time. 

Emma followed him shaking her head, ‘So much for calming it down on the movies, Em..’.

 

\----------

 

“Shit!” Emma exclaimed trying to mop up the overflowed milk from the stove top. She was lost in thought, forgetting that she was heating up milk for her nightly cup of cocoa. 

 

“Dammit!” she yanked back her hand, grazing it slightly on the burner. She rushed over to the faucet and held her right pinky under the cold tap. “Jeez Emma, get a grip.. I better not have disturbed Henry..” she mumbled. 

 

Wrapping her hand in damp paper towel, Emma snuck by her son’s room. He was still wrapped up in his duvet, breathing steadily. ‘Thank goodness..’ Emma smiled, lingering her gaze for a moment longer. They had a fabulous day; a movie followed by a late lunch at a local burger place. They finished their day with another stroll through the park after the rain cleared up. Emma felt as if Henry had never laughed in his life as much as he had today. Of course, he was out like a light when his head hit the pillow. She quietly made her way back down the hallway to the kitchen and finished making her hot chocolate.   
‘You know what? I’m adding marshmallows and whipped cream onto this after that damn burn..’ she audaciously thought. Generously adding the ingredients and topping it all off with a sprinkle of cinnamon, Emma strolled back to her room. 

 

She set her mug of cocoa down and sat at her desk, opening her laptop. ‘Okay MadameMayor what’s been going on..’ Emma clicked the link opening the forum. Confusion took over for a moment when she realized the Mayor hadn’t responded on the forum, but through a personal message. Somewhat surprised, she finally opened the message. Emma was immediately relieved knowing everything seemed to be alright at first, smiling at the usual witty responses. 

She gasped as she read over the last paragraph. ‘Oh my God..’ she looked up ‘That’s why she didn’t respond?..’ Emma felt her eyes clouding over in empathy. She had never personally gone through issues with conceiving a child (Henry was, after all, a surprise). But that didn’t mean she couldn’t understand the hurt and disappointment that probably followed that news. Emma finished reading with a somber face. She honestly couldn’t believe the Mayor had confided in her like that. She remembered telling her that she had an ear if she wanted to talk, but Emma never imagined she actually would talk to her. 

She felt somewhat prideful knowing someone else, a stranger, trusted her with information like this. ‘She’s not exactly a stranger anymore is she..’ she pondered. Emma knew she wanted to do anything she could to help the Mayor. There wasn’t much one could do messaging back and forth, but she wanted to try. She wanted to be her friend. Taking a deep breath and never second guessing her instincts, she began typing her reply to the Mayor. 

 

_“MadameMayor,_

_It’s perfectly acceptable to reply through a personal message.. To be honest, I prefer it also (smile emoji). I understand the need to keep your personal life hidden from public forums.. I feel the same way, especially now that I have Henry. I think it’s ridiculous that people could find your sarcasm annoying? Sorry to speak badly of some people in your town, but they need to loosen up! You have one fan, at least._

_He is five, yes.. It’s definitely a fun age but my God does the kid have energy. He never stops! He’s the only reason I get to eat bagels and drink hot chocolate at 28 and not gain weight (laugh emoji). He keeps me on my feet… and I can certainly vouch for the stubbornness. Haha._

_I’m not sure how to handle the compliments about me being a wonderful mother. I mean, they are so great to hear, don’t get me wrong. It’s just, well.. No one ever compliments me, especially about being a good mom. I had Henry pretty young; I was in college. Most people in my life were, well.. not so supportive. I guess not receiving support has become commonplace for me. My best friend is really amazing, though I don’t know what I would have done without her the last five years..”_

 

Emma thought back to when she walked into Ruby’s apartment with a then three month old Henry. Ruby had insisted Emma and Henry stay with her while she sorted her life out. Emma smiled thinking back to those days. It without a doubt would have been nearly impossible without her best friend’s support. 

 

_“So, thank you for the support. I certainly don’t take it for granted._

_I am so so sorry to hear about your struggles this past week. I cannot imagine what you went through when you heard those words. Henry was indeed a blessing.. a surprise, but a blessing nonetheless. I will be sure to remind myself of that from now on.. Especially when I become frustrated and tired. I am so lucky to have him. I’m going to be honest though.. I am so happy to hear that you’ve decided to adopt… somewhat personal reasons behind that.. But you are really going to make some kid’s life. I know it will work out for you. Stay strong and don’t give up.. You will make an amazing mom yourself one day._

_Do you have any information about adoption yet? Again, if you need any info or support about that, I know a little about it myself (Not as much as an adoption agency obviously so I wouldn’t go on exactly everything I tell you haha)._

_I guess you could say you have a friend. Well, that’s if you want one, I mean. Not that you wouldn’t I guess it’s just.. Well, apparently you aren’t the only one with a word vomit problem (laugh emoji).  
Take care, MadameMayor and I’ll hopefully talk to you soon if my weirdness just now didn’t scare you off._

_TwoSwansaSwimming.  
P.S. My real name is Emma.”_

 

Emma blinked and looked up. ‘Was that weird?’ She took a gulp of her now lukewarm cocoa and shrugged.

‘Well, it’s sent now.. I’m sure it will be fine.. No one doesn’t want a friend, right?’.  
Emma closed her laptop and plugged it in to recharge overnight. She walked her mug back into the kitchen, gently placing it in the sink. 

 

_Well back to the grind tomorrow.. Better get as much rest as a single mom can get.._

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	11. Chapter 11

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi again everyone! 
> 
> I'm rewarding you all for your wait from the last chapter with another post :)
> 
>  
> 
> I was hoping I could post this before Halloween because of the pumpkin carving-theme.. but I suppose that's how the pumpkin pie crust crumbles.
> 
>  
> 
> I'm pretty happy with how this chapter turned out, but please let me know what you think!
> 
>  
> 
> Thank you all for your lovely comments and kudos.. I appreciate every one of you!
> 
>  
> 
> Xoxo

\--------------------------------Chapter 11------------------------------------

 

Regina hesitated before gently knocking on the large light blue door. Her feet shifted under as she held a basket of fresh baked apple turnovers in her hands. ‘Why am I nervous?’ she thought, rolling her eyes and knocking once more. Suddenly the large door swung open with a squeal, followed by an inevitable hug around her legs. Regina smiled down at Lucas as he hugged her.

 

“Hello Lucas!”

 

“Miss Mills!!” Lucas exclaimed 

 

“I’m so happy you’re here! C’monnn!”   
He yanked her abruptly by the hand, pulling her over the threshold. Regina’s eyes widened as she clung onto the basket with her other hand, realizing she didn’t have a choice in the matter of entering the house or not. Lucas pulled her through the hallway and into the kitchen as she tried to keep up with the boy’s quick pace. 

 

“Mayor Mills! We’re so glad you could make it..” Kathryn smiled from the kitchen sink as she saw Regina being tugged into the kitchen by her very enthusiastic son. 

 

“Lucas! Don’t tug Miss Mills like that, goodness.. She’s going to get whiplash..” 

 

“Sorry Mom..” Lucas dropped the Mayor’s hand “Sorry Miss Mills..” he looked up to her   
solemnly. 

 

“It’s okay Lucas..” she brightly smiled as she ran a hand through her now tousled hair. “Hello, Kathryn.. Thank you again for inviting me..” She approached Kathryn with the same smile as she handed over the baked goods. 

 

“Of course! We are so happy to have you.. I think one of us is a bit more zealous in showing that but..” She laughed, side eyeing Lucas who was taking a seat in front of his pumpkin at the table. “Thank you for the turnovers! They smell amazing, wow..” 

 

Regina laughed along with the comment about Lucas, appreciating the idea that anyone was happy to see her at all. 

“You’re very welcome.. It’s an old recipe.. I hope you all enjoy them.” She smiled. 

 

“I’m sure we will, thank you again. You’re welcome to pick out a pumpkin from the back porch.. There are about ten to choose from. We will probably start carving in fifteen minutes or so when I can wrangle all of the kids inside. There’s also food and drinks outside if you’re hungry; please help yourself..” Kathryn smiled, leading her over to the back door. 

 

“Oh, alright.. Thank you. I would love a drink actually..” 

 

Kathryn turned to Lucas “Hey kiddo, would you mind taking Miss Mills out back to help her grab a drink and pick out a pumpkin?” 

 

Regina turned from Kathryn to Lucas, grinning “I would love that actually, shall we?” 

 

“Okay momma..” Lucas shot up from his chair, grabbing onto Regina’s hand again “I won’t yank your arm this time, Miss Mills…” he said seriously as he lead her out onto the deck.. Regina laughing behind him.

 

\----------

 

“Noooo Miss Mills, like thisss!!” Lucas giggled as he dug his hand into his very large pumpkin, pulling the guts out and throwing them down onto the newspaper-lined table. Regina cringed, looking at the slop still stuck to the boy’s hands. 

 

“O-Okay..” she hesitantly looked into her own pumpkin, absolutely dreading the sensation that was about to befall her. She previously tried scooping out the pumpkin guts using a ladle, discovering that was indeed not the most efficient tool. Regina reached for multiple others; trying one and then the next until Lucas started laughing at her attempts to use anything but her hands. She sighed, claiming defeat at her fruitless attempts and lowered her hand into the pumpkin. Regina had a feeling that she was making the most ridiculously nauseated facial reactions whilst moving her hand around.. 

Which was indeed confirmed upon hearing Lucas and the rest of the kids laughing hysterically at her. 

 

“You’re so silly Miss Mills… it’s just a pumpkin!” Lucas laughed.

 

“I know.. I know it just feels so.. _Icky_..” 

Making another disgusted face, she lifted her hand to toss a large bundle of seeds and pumpkin guts onto the newspaper with the other piles. She blinked.  
“I have to do that again?” looking up at Kathryn with a morose expression.

Kathryn laughed finding it pretty amusing to watch her no-nonsense boss of three years elbow deep in pumpkin guts. “Of course not.. Kids, let’s all help Miss Mills get rid of the pumpkin guts.. What do you say?” 

 

“ - Okay! - I’ll do it! - Pumpkin guts, yesss!” They watched three of the kids shout as they ran over to help the Mayor dig through the orange, gooey mess. 

 

Kathryn laughed again and handed the Mayor a damp paper towel.

 

“What?” Regina questioned as she thankfully wiped her hands clean.

 

“That’s got to be the first time I’ve ever heard you use the term ‘icky’ ..” Kathryn nearly doubled over laughing so hard.

 

“Ha-Ha Mrs. Midas… very funny..” Regina rolled her eyes and returned her laugh “I will be sure to add it to my professional vocabulary from now on…” slyly smiling at her friend. Yes, they were definitely friends now. 

 

\----------

 

After finishing the pumpkin carving, Regina sipped her mug of pumpkin spice coffee Kathryn made and watched on as the children played in the backyard. Kathryn sat down next to her, sending her a warm smile. 

 

“I cannot get over how adorable Lucas is..” Regina laughed watching the boy chase after his baby cousin whilst blowing bubbles.

 

Kathryn chuckled “He is indeed.. He has always been such a sweetheart..” she smiled fondly at her son and his gentle way of playing with the one year old. She glanced back to Regina whose eyes seemed to be glazing over with tears while watching the children run around giggling. Kathryn was about to question whether that was in her head or not when a single tear indeed slowly made its way down Regina’s cheek.

 

“Regina, what-?” Kathryn tentatively placed a hand on Regina’s shoulder, hoping it wasn’t over the line. “Is everything alright?”

 

Regina quickly swiped her tear away and cleared her throat “Yes, everything’s fine, I’m just.. I’m just tired I suppose..” ignoring the way Kathryn called her Regina for the first time since they had met three years ago.

 

“Regina..” Kathryn cleared her throat as well “I know, we’re not the closest of friends.. Yet..”

 

The Mayor looked up at that with wide eyes.

 

“..But I am here, if you ever want to talk about anything…”

 

“You want to be my friend?..” Regina questioned with a small tilt of her head and furrowed brows.

 

“I-I would like to be, yes. If you believe it’s appropriate of course.. I mean..”

 

Regina smiled “I would like that, Kathryn. Yes. I just don’t really have friends..” she glanced back down.

 

“Well, you have one now.” Kathryn smiled triumphantly. 

 

The brunette looked up and returned Kathryn’s smile. “Thank you…” glancing back at the children chasing each other with the bubble wand, Regina’s emotions began to escalate again. 

Maybe it was time to confide in someone. 

 

\----------

 

Regina’s eyes fluttered open as soft streams of sunlight began creeping their way into her bedroom. She sighed and turned over to check her clock, reading 6:03. Lying on her back, her mind started drifting to yesterday. 

It truly did seem like she had a friend now. That was a new concept for the Mayor, but the idea of having someone to talk to made her smile. Even someone just being there to listen was an unfamiliar opportunity. Kathryn had indeed listened as Regina let her know of almost all her struggles the past couple of weeks. She was extremely supportive and understanding as the Mayor finally released all of her worry through words. They had even hugged at the end of the evening after Regina thanked them all for their time and the thoughtful invitation. 

Of course, that was not to compete without Lucas’s colossal hug. Regina smiled thinking back to how Lucas didn’t want her to leave. He really was so sweet. After yesterday, Regina had no doubts that she wanted to go through with the adoption process. Kathryn thought it was a wonderful idea and insisted that she would be a fantastic mother. 

 

Regina smiled and pulled herself out of the comforts of her warm bed.. Today was going to be a good day.

Today, she was going to contact an adoption agency.

 

\----------

 

“Momma, are you and Auntie Rubes going to get married?” 

 

Emma literally tripped on her own two feet as she and Henry walked hand in hand to school.

 

“Henry, wh-what?!” Emma stopped, looking down as he stopped and looked back up at her with inquisitive eyes. 

 

“Are you and Auntie Rubes going to get married?” He asked again, thinking his mom simply didn’t hear the first time. 

 

“Henry, why would you ask that?” she questioned as she stooped down to his level.

 

“Well, she isn’t _really_ my Aunt and.. You said you loved her momma..”

 

“Oh, Henry.. I love your Auntie Ruby, but like a friend.. Not like married couples love each other, sweetheart..” she trailed off hoping he’d understand. 

 

“Oh, okay momma. It’s just.. My friend Dominic has two mommies and he says not every kid has a mommy and daddy and I just thought maybe..”

 

Emma smiled fondly at her little boy “Of course, kiddo.. Dominic is right.. Not every family has a mommy and daddy.. I mean, our family is just a mom and son.. Right?” she asked, hoping he’d understand that perspective. 

 

“Yeah that’s true..” he looked to the side, thinking.

 

“The important thing is, Henry.. No matter what makes up a family..” she gently grabbed his shoulders to look in his hazel eyes “..no matter how big or small; two moms, two dads, one mom or one dad.. A family has love. Okay? Especially our little one here..” she said placing a kiss on his chubby cheek.

 

Henry wrapped his arms around her neck “Okay momma..” 

 

Emma’s smile was full of tears as she lifted up her little (or, not-so-little anymore) boy to carry him the remaining distance to school. 

 

\----------

 

Regina hung up the phone with a sigh. This was indeed going to be quite the process. 

 

The gentleman from the adoption agency informed her of what was most likely to be coming her way; appointments, research, completing an adoption profile, filling out a questionnaire and an eventual home study. This was all before the Mayor was even to be listed as a possible adoptive mother; the dreaded waiting period. Regina sighed again, trying her best to avoid the pessimistic thoughts that were attempting to take over. 

_‘Mr. Anderson informed me that I will have a high chance at a positive outcome.. I am a stable woman with a high profile government position.. It will be fine.’_ She nodded to herself. 

 

“Mayor Mills, I’m going to take my lunch now if that’s alright..” Kathryn buzzed through.

 

“Alright Kathryn, thank you for letting me know..” Regina stoically answered, adoption still on her mind. 

 

“Would you care to join me?” 

 

Regina smiled. “Thank you for the offer, Kathryn.. But I still have a few things to catch up on.. Maybe tomorrow?” she asked with a bit of uncertainty. 

 

“Oh, of course! Tomorrow works too.. Let me know if you’d like anything while I’m out..” she could almost hear Kathryn’s smile behind the phone.

 

“Thank you, I will. Enjoy your lunch.” 

 

Regina heard a brief ‘thank you’ in return, followed by the sound of the entrance door closing. 

She sighed, thinking how much work she still needed to catch up on and knowing it was only Monday. She worked steadily through what she assumed to be the next hour, blinking when she heard a knock on her door.

 

“Come in”

 

“Madame Mayor? Apologies for interrupting you, I just thought I’d bring you a little something to help you get through the afternoon..” Kathryn walked swiftly over to Regina’s desk, setting down a to-go cup of hot black coffee and a small box of macarons. Regina looked down as she placed the items onto her desk. She looked back up at Kathryn, taken aback by the thoughtful gesture. 

 

“I just noticed how you haven’t taken your lunch and I figured a little sugar rush couldn’t hurt..” Kathryn laughed. 

 

“Kathryn, th-thank you so much… that was so sweet. Macarons are my absolute favorite.. How did you know?”

 

Kathryn smiled “A refined dessert for a refined boss..” she laughed again “I actually made them last night… they’re chocolate with a raspberry compote..” 

 

Regina’s eyes widened thinking of the skill that went into making the small treats.. She couldn’t deny she was looking forward to trying them. “Thank you, truly. That was so sweet of you.. No pun intended..” 

 

Kathryn laughed heartily. “Of course! It’s what friends do..” she pivoted on her feet to make her way back to her desk. Before reaching Regina’s door, she heard her speak up.

 

“So, does lunch tomorrow at Granny’s sound alright? The least I can do is buy..” Regina smiled.   
Kathryn turned back around.

“Lunch at Granny’s is perfect.. And no way you’re buying!” she smiled again and bolted from the office before Regina could counter argue. She honestly didn’t need a rebuttal.. Regina knew she would win that fight. 

 

Smiling again, the Mayor checked the time to see how long she had actually been hard at work. “Goodness, 3:15?” she whispered.   
She grabbed the coffee, taking a much needed gulp and letting the warmth settle over her for a moment. She set her paperwork aside and grabbed her salad out of the refrigerator. The Mayor set that aside for a moment as well; opting to eat a macaron first. She hummed her approval of the French confection, thinking it was honestly the best one she had ever tried. She would certainly have to remember to compliment Kathryn on her baking skills.

 

Opening her laptop, Regina decided to scroll through her personal emails and messages. Noticing her CafeMom tab was still open, she read through TwoSwansaSwimming’s reply, quickly obliterating any previous thoughts of reading through emails. 

 

Regina felt her heart jump at reading the words. She glanced up upon finishing the message, a half eaten macaron still in her grasp. 

 

_“Emma..”_

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	12. Chapter 12

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi everyone! I'm back after quite a long break.. apologies. 
> 
> I should hopefully be getting back into the swing of things after the holidays and am working on new chapters for both 'Cafe Moms' and 'Friendzoned' this week.  
> Hopefully everyone is still with me. <3 
> 
>  
> 
> As always, thanks for reading! Xo
> 
>  
> 
> *******************************

Purposefully evading the questioning thought as to why her heart jumped whilst reading Emma’s message, Regina made quick work to reply while she still had time. 

 

_“Emma,_

_I appreciate the understanding to converse through personal messages instead. Don’t worry, I don’t take offense to your comment about some people in my town.. I’m going to be honest with you.. Some are absolute imbeciles. That’s certainly a statement I could never make to anyone else, being the Mayor. It also felt quite releasing to type out. (laugh emoji)_

_Others, well.. Others are not so moronic._

_So your son’s name is Henry? That’s so sweet.. And quite an old world name. I love it.”_

 

She continued to read through the message to correspond to her reply. Regina hummed and made a mental note of Emma’s age.. ‘She’s not much younger than me..’

 

_“I can only imagine the energy constantly needed to keep up with a five year old. I spent the afternoon at my friend’s house and her son, Lucas, is 7. Let’s just say I fell asleep quite quickly last night after only one afternoon with Lucas and his cousins. I cannot imagine how it would feel on a daily basis (although, hopefully I will know in the not too distant future.)_

_I contacted an adoption agency today. I have my first appointment on Thursday and I am so thrilled to finally start this process! My nerves are still in full force.. But I’m trying to have faith. My thoughts sometimes remind me of how things haven’t always worked out.. That’s somewhat of an understatement I suppose..”_

She scoffed, thinking how almost nothing in her life went according to plan. At least when it came to love. 

 

_“But I have a good feeling about this. I’m staying positive. (smile emoji) Other than what the gentleman at the adoption agency informed me of; I have been researching adoption, yes. I feel as if online research alone cannot necessarily provide me with the most adequate understanding of the adoption process.. Any or all suggestions would be extremely appreciated!_

_And Thank you, Emma, for thinking I will be an amazing mom one day.”_

The brunette felt her heart tug as she read over those words from Emma’s message once more. No one had ever shown that much confidence in her before. And Emma didn’t even have a reason for it. She didn’t know Emma that well yet, but she had to admit… that was not exactly a surprising personality trait for her. Emma seemed to be the type of person to care and support without preamble. Regina smiled.

 

_I agree with you. It’s quite rare to find support myself. It can be discouraging. We need to remember we do not need approval from anyone but ourselves. I learned that many years ago. If we believe in ourselves, we can achieve anything._

_Being a good mother is no exception._  
I know you could have been one of the many to easily pass judgment toward my situation. A  
single, working woman trying to start a family on her own at 33. Believe me when I say, not everyone is as approachable or considerate. As someone with not many friends and no family for support.. I truly do appreciate that. 

_And don’t worry about your word vomit problem, dear… It’s quite apparent I have a similar problem myself. It seems to be our ‘thing?’.. Or perhaps it’s a friend ‘thing’ (wink emoji) .._

_By reason of becoming fast friends, I presume it’s only fair to tell you my name as well?_

_Regina. Regina Mills._

_Talk to you soon, Emma.”_

 

\----------

 

Emma heard her phone ‘ping’ as she walked back to the breakroom to take her lunch. She grabbed it from her back pocket, smiling at the notification. It was from CafeMom. Emma wasn’t sure when it had happened; but sometime between her initial reply to MayorMills and now, she realized that her anticipation and excitement levels to open her messages increased tenfold. 

She pocketed her phone once more and grabbed her packed lunch. Deciding to enjoy her lunch outside on another beautiful autumn day, Emma ran through the cafeteria to quickly grab a coffee. Moving lunch outside meant approximately 6 minutes deducted from her 45 minute lunch break due to the walk to reach the park across the road. Working as a front desk agent as well as a single mom on her off time, Emma wanted to enjoy as much time off of her feet as possible. She made quick work of swiping her card and heading out to through the rear exit, happily greeting guests on her way. 

 

Keeping somewhat of a brisk pace, Emma made it to her favorite bench in the small park and checked her watch. Forty one minutes remaining. ‘Not bad’ she smirked. ‘Probably my best time yet..’ after a moment, rolling her eyes at her sad adult-like game. She grabbed her lunch, unwrapping her peanut butter and banana sandwich and pulling out her bag of potato chips. 

She smiled, thinking of Henry’s comments before school that morning. 

 

_“Momma.. You are not spuposed to eat the same sammich as me.. You are a grown up!?..”_

 

Emma found herself chuckling out loud, before remembering she was indeed in public. She cleared her throat and glanced around to be sure no one thought she was out of her mind. Henry’s comment made her laugh even harder that morning, her eyes nearly tearing up from laughter as she hugged him. In his defense, he wasn’t wrong. She was technically a grown up. Emma remembered him shrugging at her response. 

 

_“Kid, can I help it if I sometimes enjoy eating like a child?.. Peanut butter and banana sandwiches are the best!”_

Tossing her trash from her lunch in the bin, Emma grabbed her phone out of her back pocket noting that she had another 20 minutes of her break remaining. She sipped her coffee as she opened her CafeMom app, knowing exactly how she was going to spend the rest of her break. She read through the reply slowly, noticing this one was a particularly lengthy message. 

She didn’t mind. It somewhat became Emma’s new guilty pleasure.. Sending these messages back and forth. Upon reading the last paragraph, Emma could feel her face reddening in fondness. ‘She called me dear?’ 

 

She cleared her throat and wiped her brow to finish reading.

 

 _“Regina..”_ she whispered with a heavier emotion than she probably should have. 

 

‘I like it. It suits her. It’s very… regal..’ she smiled as her thoughts trailed off. She needed to write back before her break was over. Not questioning the fact that ‘needed’ was a bit of an exaggeration, she began her reply. 

 

_“Regina,_

_I’ll start off by saying.. There is a slight chance I may miss calling you MadameMayor. I love your real name, don’t get me wrong.. It’s very fitting. MadameMayor is just somehow, I don’t know.. Mollifying? I’ll shut up now before I accidentally offend you.”_

 

Emma laughed internally at the remarks about the townspeople.. She really did love that wit. 

 

_“My son’s name is Henry, yes. Don’t worry, he wasn’t named after Henry VIII. Lol. Long story, short.. He was named after the poet, Henry Reed. His poem, ‘The Door and The Window’ has significant meaning to me. Anyway, yes it is very old school (smile emoji). I think I like that about him.. Henry is sort of an old soul himself._

_Well, as old as a five year old can be (laugh emoji). He’s extremely intuitive and has a protective nature about himself. He is something special._

_And you’re completely right, full of all the energy haha. I’m currently enjoying a rare moment of relaxation before my shift ends. They’re few and far between as a single mom._

_Although, it seems as if you will find that out yourself soon! (Not to scare you off adopting lol)_

_I’m so happy you’ve started the process! It will be so worth it, I know it. I understand your nerves, but you’ve got this. I believe in you._

_Just keep those positive vibes going. You’re welcome for the comment about you being a great mom. I truly believe it and I have no doubts. Plus the world we live in today.. If women (especially single moms) don’t stick together? No one else will do it for us. I think we all need support and encouragement. And you’re right; it’s not easy to find it from others. That’s exactly why I would never judge you. How could I when I hate being judged myself?_

_To be completely honest? I think you are extremely brave._

_Maybe word vomit is our thing haha. (Why does it come as a surprise that you’d even type out the word ‘vomit’?) (laugh emoji). Either way, I’m thankful you’ve welcomed me into the friend zone. I believe you used the term ‘misanthrope’ to describe yourself earlier.. So I must have done something right.. for once ha._

_Talk to you soon, b.f.f.  
(laugh emoji)_

_Emma.”_

 

She clicked send whilst finishing the last of her coffee and checked the time once more. ‘Shit, five minutes to get back..’ Jumping up to make her way back to the front desk, Emma glanced up at The Fairmont as she hustled. 

She smiled up at the grand structure; seeing its spires and beautifully intricate detailing, understanding why it was known as ‘The Castle in the City’. 

 

\----------

 

Regina pulled her key from the front door of 108 Mifflin and stepped inside. She shivered, realizing the heat had not been turned on since that morning. She made her way to the dining room, flicking the temperature up to 74, before heading upstairs for a much needed bath. She sprinkled some effervescent bath salts before turning on the hot water and divesting herself of her fitted pencil skirt, blouse and heels. She sunk into the steaming bath and sighed. 

 

Yet another taxing day. It began with her monthly town meeting; Mr. Nolan, Mr. Gold, Sheriff Graham, Deputy Mulan, Dr. Hopper, Ms. Lucas, Mr. Miner and Kathryn all gathered at the large table in Regina’s office to discuss town issues.  
After a lengthy and migraine inducing discussion on who was going to participate in the revampment of the library, Regina was fit to be tied. Everyone ultimately unanimously agreed to assist in the reopening ... Everyone except Mr. Miner. He quickly complained that not everyone would be using the facility; therefore they shouldn’t all be included in the reconstruction process. The Mayor immediately gawked at the teacher. Regina wasn’t certain as to why Leroy was even included in the town meetings. He was someone with a strong, unwavering opinion who constantly challenged her decisions. And quite frankly, lazy to boot.

 

As a hard working woman, she was sick of it. The Mayor sighed and stood from her chair at the head of the table, subtly reminding Leroy that _she_ was Mayor of this town, and he was a teacher. He grumbled under his breath words sounding vaguely like ‘evil witch’ as he received a hard stare from Principle Nolan. The Mayor knew she wasn’t the most amiable, but that didn’t matter. She was the Mayor and she decided what was best for her town. It wasn’t her job to be amiable. Storybrooke, albeit quite small, required a great deal of work and effort. That effort must be cooperative. No excuses. After listening to everyone’s agreeance whilst Leroy (she preferred to call him Grumpy in her head) reluctantly nodded, she arduously smiled and dismissed everyone from her office. 

 

After the meeting that took 45 minutes longer than planned, Regina caught up on her paperwork and her usual mayoral duties until her meeting with Mr. Anderson at 5pm. Although quite overwhelming, she was pleasantly surprised by his optimism about her adoption process. The meeting went smoothly and Regina learned quite a bit about the steps she would need to follow to be successful. According to her adoption agent’s timeline, it was probable that the Mayor would be on the adoption list within 6-8 weeks. Regina smiled, closing her eyes at the prospect of having a child within the year and relaxed into her bubble bath letting her mind clear for once. 

 

\-------------------------

 

Regina jolted at the sound of the teapot screeching. She was so enveloped in Emma’s latest message that she completely forgot she put the kettle on at all. Jumping up from the kitchen table, she quickly lifted the pot off of the stove and poured the steaming water into her mug. She dunked her green tea bag in and stirred in a teaspoon of honey before rushing back to the table to finish reading. 

 

They had been sending messages back and forth for about six weeks now. Despite her attempts, Regina could no longer deny that she looked forward to reading Emma’s messages. They gave her a sense of comfort.. yet exhilaration. She couldn’t quite explain why. She didn’t want to. She just wanted to enjoy the feeling of sending and receiving messages from someone who actually cared about her. Cared about her? She mulled that over for a moment. It certainly was portrayed that way by Emma. Although, it was a bit soon in their unique friendship to put labels on things. No matter what though, Regina couldn’t deny that she indeed cared for Emma. It sounded strange, especially for someone who had only one friend in life. Two if you include her love once lost. She cringed. She didn’t want to think about him right now. 

 

Roaming her eyes back over Emma’s words, she smiled at the way she would write one thing to only backtrack and change her thought process. That amused the Mayor to no end. If she were being completely honest.. She thought it quite .. adorable. Regina blinked at that thought wondering just how and when she had become so invested in this Emma Swan. Why was Emma being so kind to her? She continued to read over words like “great”, “brave”, “care”.  
All of these lovely words pertaining to herself. Regina let out a chuckle recalling the first time she read over the term “b.f.f.”. She rarely heard that term before; seeing as she had never indeed had a ‘b.f.f.’.. as well as being a 33 year old Mayor of a small town. 

It made her smile grow. The term was very… Emma. She scrolled through the messages, surprised to see just how many they had exchanged in six weeks.

 

She needed to be rational about this. Regina was not one to easily lose her composure and give into her emotions. Rationality was best. It’s what protected her heart for the last fifteen years and she didn’t plan on altering that anytime soon. There were reasons she didn’t have friends. As unavoidably tempting as the idea of friends may be, Regina had lost too much in her life to let anyone break down her walls. Kathryn had come the closest in all of those years.. And the Mayor was still hesitant to get too close to her assistant and her family. Lucas had been the key. Without the charming little boy, Regina was certain she would have emotionally pushed Kathryn away by now.  
What did that mean for Emma? For herself? She hardly knew anything about Miss Swan. She knew she was 28, she had a son named Henry and she was a devoted and loving mother. Emma seemed caring, sweet and harmless. But who knew anyone, really? Emma could be a horrible person. She could be a liar. She could be a creep who stalks women on chat sites. Regina shook her head. That was absurd. She may not know all there was to know about Emma Swan, but she knew she wasn’t a bad person. Regina just knew. 

The fact still remained that the Mayor had not truly had a substantial conversation with Emma Swan. She didn’t know her job title? She didn’t know if she was married, divorced? She didn’t even know where she was from. Regina slipped on her eyeglasses and clicked on the cursor to begin her reply.

 

Perhaps now was the time to find out. 

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------


	13. Chapter 13

Emma tensed up after finishing Regina’s most recent message. 

 

She wanted to know more about her? 

In her defense, Regina had a point. Emma told her she wanted to be friends. It only made sense. Also, Regina went into more detail in this message; informing her a bit more about her life, her job, her home. She could only assume that this was an attempt to motivate Emma to do the same. 

Emma scanned over the words once more. There was just something about Regina. She wasn’t sure what exactly, but Emma would be lying to herself if she didn’t want to find out more about her. There was an air of mystery about the Mayor. It almost seemed as if Emma got a glimpse into the hidden personality no one else got to see. Regina claimed to be somewhat a loner, prickly, even feared among others. 

Emma smiled.. Knowing that _that_ Mayor was not the same Mayor she knew. Regina was perhaps a little complicated, yes... But she was also kind, nurturing, funny, witty. She certainly couldn’t forget witty. That was Emma’s favorite part of reading the Mayor’s messages. At some points, Emma admitted she had never laughed so much as she had reading through some of the Mayor’s amusing comments. 

 

She sighed, knowing she should agree. She was certain the only reason she wanted to avoid opening up until now was the inevitability of being emotionally exposed to someone. It wasn’t exactly a secret that Emma Swan didn’t easily bare her true emotions. Those were bottled up like the wine nestled in her fridge. Ruby and Henry had been the only people in five years to uncork that bottle. Emma wasn’t always this way. She didn’t _want_ to always be this way. She had just been wronged too many times before. Hurt too many times. She cringed at the memories of Henry’s father, her own parents giving her up like an unwanted puppy, foster homes tossing her in and out for 16 years. Emma knew what it meant to allow someone into her heart. There were so many moments of “maybe this family will love me” and “maybe I should give this person a chance”... “What’s so horrible about falling in love?”

She had learned. After broken promises, being thrown to the curb, abandoned. Emma had to be strong to survive, her emotions and trust locked inside safely behind a tough outer shell. If not for her, for her son. Henry had to be protected no matter what. He was her everything and truly one of the few people she knew would never purposefully hurt her. 

 

Of course, it didn’t appear this way to most. Emma was friendly and easygoing on the outside. Not that she was a fake person per se.. She just never easily displayed her true self. Emma knew that if she truly wanted a friend in Regina, she deserved more than pseudo smiles (well, emoji smiles) and mixed messages. Regina deserved the friend she trusted Emma to be. She could tell Regina wasn’t exactly one to easily display her emotions either. Maybe this was a common ground? Maybe this was a way to finally put her trust in someone? 

Maybe, just maybe it would be worth it. 

 

Emma set her empty mug of cocoa in the sink and made it back to her bedroom to reply to Regina’s message. Taking a deep, steadying breath; she began typing her reply. 

“Dear Regina, ...

 

\---------------------

 

**Friday.**

Regina was looking forward to her weekend. She blinked, mulling over those words once more in her head. ‘Looking forward to the weekend’. To say that was a new sensation was an understatement. 

She honestly couldn’t remember the last time she looked forward to her weekend. It wasn’t uncommon to enjoy weekends in the end, but she never excitingly anticipated them. Kathryn had invited Regina to the movie theater that following afternoon. Regina’s immediate instinct was to come up with an excuse, claiming to have some sort of plan already in place. She was trying her best to let Kathryn in, but old habits die hard. Before she could voice her lame excuse, Kathryn assured her it was actually Lucas’s idea. He had been insistent on seeing the Mayor again after Kathryn asked what he wanted to do this weekend. It seems she and Lucas had struck quite a friendship at least. Regina’s resolve melted at hearing that Lucas wanted to see her again. There was absolutely no way she would say no now. 

Thinking back, she was happy she hadn’t. She was finished saying no to things. She wanted her potential friendship with Kathryn to work out. Regina was spent with being lonely, and spending a fun filled afternoon with the Midas's was a positive start.

 

She parked the Mercedes in the driveway of the Mifflin Mansion and made her way into her home. She hung her coat and slipped off her heels, deciding to stay downstairs to begin cooking an early dinner. Grabbing her marinated salmon and asparagus from the fridge, Regina called out for Alexa to play some soft jazz to cook to. She pulled her apron over her head and reached for the cast iron pan. 

Regina loved to cook. 

The kitchen was one place she was at ease. Before his death, her father taught her everything he knew.. How to chop, saute, boil, simmer and season. He even knew how to bake. Not quite as well as Regina could now, but her father drew her to the hobby. She smiled, raking through the few of her memories of how patient he had been with her. It must have required a good amount of it, seeing as she began learning at around 6. 

She placed the piece of salmon in the pan and her now seasoned asparagus in the oven. Realizing she had a few minutes to wait for that to sear, she strolled over to her liquor cabinet to pour herself a glass of apple cider. The homemade cider was something she ventured to learn on her own. She began bottling her recipe a few years ago after taking the time to perfect it. She hummed in approval as she took her first sip. This season was the best batch yet. 

 

After flipping her salmon, the brunette leaned against the large kitchen island and checked her phone for the message she was hoping to read since that morning. 

She opened her app and hesitated. Learning from her past mistake of forgetting about the kettle, Regina decided to plate her dinner before becoming too engrossed in Emma’s message again. She sighed bringing her plate to the dining table, knowing she could certainly wait until after she ate to read the message. She placed her napkin on her lap and began. 

 

And Regina made it halfway through her meal before giving in. 

 

‘Dammit..’ rolling her eyes she snatched her phone from its resting place and slid her plate aside. She read through Emma’s message thoroughly. In succession it made her laugh, frown, tear up then laugh again. Upon finishing the message, Regina came to a conclusion. 

 

Only Emma could pull all of those emotions from her within 5 minutes. 

 

She looked up and wiped a tear from under her eyelash. Clearing her throat, she lifted her plate to take back to the kitchen. Placing it in the dishwasher, the brunette topped off her cider once more and accompanied it up to her bedroom. Regina made quick work of changing into her pajamas and slid into her plushy bed to reply to Emma’s message. 

 

Regina felt her eyes welling up again as she reread the woman’s words. Emma had indeed opened up in this message. More so than the Mayor thought she would. Perhaps it wasn’t planned on Emma’s end. The message started out light-hearted and austere but swiftly moved to deeper subjects. Miss Swan (Regina could now confirm that it was ‘Miss’, not ‘Mrs.’) divulged many things in this recent message. 

One of them being how she was an orphan. Not only that, but how she had been tossed from home to home without as much as a hug goodbye from many - she thought at the time - potential parents. She ran away from the system at sixteen. She scraped by taking whatever odd jobs she could manage until she moved in with her then boyfriend at 22. Emma admitted that was her first love. And Henry’s father. They made it by as Emma worked in the local grocery store earning as much as she possibly could for her future baby. Neal promised her he would stay by her side through it all. He was a thief, but according to Emma, a charming thief. Regina scoffed at that section as she read, before realizing Emma had been young and impressionable. She shook her head to remove the usual judgmental snark that was permeating through. Emma didn’t open up to her to receive judgment back. She deserved to be heard, especially from a friend. 

Despite his “charm”, Neal eventually abandoned a then eight months pregnant Emma. She woke up one day to find nothing but a note on her nightstand reading: “Sorry”. 

Regina closed her fist and tensed her jaw at that. How could someone leave their girlfriend and child alone with practically nothing? She knew one thing was for certain.. If she ever ran into this Neal, he would only wish he could still write the word ‘sorry’. Before allowing her anger to take over, Regina focused again on the words in front of her. When Henry had been born, Emma’s utter devastation was replaced with absolute joy. 

Her friend, Ruby had taken them in and helped Emma raise Henry. He had been the light at the end of an extremely dark tunnel. Emma wrote about Henry as a baby and toddler and Regina could almost imagine Miss Swan’s laughter as she typed out a few of her comical memories. That was the brunette’s favorite section of Emma’s message. She had already reread that four times over. Emma then went on to tell her how she had finished her degree and worked her way up through the customer service industry. Emma was now a front desk agent at one of the most prestigious hotels in Vancouver. 

Regina had to blink twice at that. 

Vancouver? 

For some reason, the Mayor had always imagined Emma living not very far from herself.. Boston, D.C., Chicago perhaps? She was shocked. 

Emma was Canadian. 

Emma and Henry were Canadian. Not only that, but it wasn’t the Canadian border close to her. It was nearly the opposite hemisphere. Regina grabbed her laptop and immediately typed Vancouver into google. She was obviously aware of the city but she wasn’t necessarily certain of its exact location. The brunette knew it was far. 

That was indeed confirmed by her google search. Approximately 3,296 miles. Her stomach flipped reading the distance. Regina wasn’t sure why that fact seemed to slightly upset her. What did it matter? Obviously they could still type to each other. The brunette mulled it over for a moment, truly trying to analyze her feelings in the matter. She slipped off her glasses and sat up from her comfortable position as a thought suddenly crossed her mind. 

 

Maybe.. Maybe she wanted to _meet_ Emma?

 

\----------

 

**Thursday Evening.**

Emma wasn’t quite sure what had gotten into her. She had been staring straight ahead for the past five minutes or so. She knew one thing was for certain, it had taken her a year longer than that to open up to Ruby for the first time. 

“It must be this damn laptop” she whispered as she blinked, tossing it aside on her bed. “It has some sort of magical power to withdraw my words or something..” she huffed. 

Rolling her eyes at the ridiculous notion she stood up and began pacing her bedroom. ‘So I said too much.. Big deal? It’s fine. So Regina now knows that I’m an absolute loser who had a kid out of wedlock and grew up an orphan. It’s fine. I told her the only person I’ve ever loved left me right before having Henry. And the only friend I had took us in to help me raise him. It’s fine….’ 

Emma’s thoughts trailed off as she stopped walking, realizing she was going to create a hole in the carpet at this pace. ‘At least I told some cute Henry stories?..’ she winced, plopping back down onto her bed as she rubbed her forehead. 

 

She deduced nothing more could be done about it tonight. Maybe she would apologize in the next message? That’s it, she’ll apologize. Tomorrow. That was pretty much the definition of TMI and Regina no doubt would be overwhelmed by it. Emma tucked herself into bed, finding sleep a tad more difficult tonight than she had hoped. 

 

\---------

 

Before she knew it, her alarm was blaring in her ear summoning her into the morning. Seven in the morning to be exact. 

Emma rolled over and swung at it, practically knocking the alarm clock off of her bedside table. 

“Shit. Oops..” 

the blonde sat up, gently placing it back on the table and rubbing her eyes. She stretched, checking the time again. Her morning routine consisted of a hot shower before Henry woke up and if she was lucky she could get a pot of coffee started as well. She quickly jumped into the steamy water and sighed. She felt exhausted. Almost like a truck ran her over. ‘A massage would be like the best thing ever right now..’ she thought, laughing to herself. Yeah right, a single mom having time to get a massage. That was almost as funny as Henry’s dinosaur joke he told yesterday.

 

_“Hey Momma.. Why can’t you hear pterodactyls when they go to the bathroom?”_

_“Hmm.. I don’t know Henry, why?” Emma questioned with enthusiasm._

_“Because the ‘P’ is silent!”_

 

Emma smiled again. Henry had rolled over with laughter for at least 30 seconds after that one. He really was her kid. That was an Emma joke if she’d ever heard one. She rinsed her hair and turned off the water, quietly making her way back into her room to get dressed for the day. As expected, just as she turned the coffee pot on to begin brewing, she heard little pattering feet coming down the hallway. 

“Morning Momma!” Henry smiled groggily up as he walked over to hug her.

“Good morning my little dino lover..” She picked him up for a better hug as she kissed his head. Henry clung to her like a koala, laying his head on her shoulder. She rocked him back and forth for a moment, savoring this quality time and knowing she wouldn’t be able to hold and rock her little boy in the upcoming years. After a few minutes, she sighed and kissed his little head again before setting him back down. 

“So, what’s for breakfast today momma?” 

Emma squatted down to his level. “Whatever you’d like kiddo..”

“Ooo! Chocolate Mo-”

His mom cut him off before he could finish “Ah, nice try kid.. No dessert for breakfast. And anyway...it’s Halloween on Monday and you, Mr., will be having a year’s supply of chocolate in one evening. She pinched his cheek with a wink. “What - from our usual breakfast list - would you like today?”

Henry whined for a split second before remembering whining was never a clever tactic with his mom. More whining would just cause him to lose his dessert for the rest of the week. “Okay momma.. How bout…” he lifted his pudgy finger to his chin in thought “Oatmeal!”

Emma laughed “Let me guess.. With blueberries?!”

“How’d you know momma!” Henry giggled. The little man was obsessed with blueberries and of course knew his mom was aware. Emma laughed again, picking him up and tickling him. As Henry began to thrash about, she decided that was enough torture for early in the morning and sent him off to get ready for his day while she made his oatmeal.

 

The walk to school was a rushed one.. The temperature in Vancouver seemed to drop drastically between October and November. The rain didn’t help. Emma ushered Henry into his classroom and greeted Miss Blanchard. After chatting with Henry’s teacher while he put his backpack in his cubby, she kissed him goodbye and made her way out of the primary school to begin her last work day of the week. Emma rushed to work, attempting to avoid the inevitable downpour the meteorologists predicted this morning. She shucked off her leather jacket as she made it to work, hanging it in the break room. 

“Swan!” Emma startled and turned around hearing Ruby’s voice.

“What the hell Rubes are you trying to give me a heart attack?” Ruby laughed shaking her head.

“Sorry, Ems .. I was just happy to see you..” she shrugged with a wink. 

“Uh-huh..” Emma trailed off “What’s up? You seem .. chipper?” the blonde took in the way Ruby’s very enthusiastic grin didn’t diminish in the last 60 seconds as it typically would have this early in the morning. 

“Do I?” Ruby replied, mocking innocence. 

Emma made her way to clock in, nearly letting her banter with Ruby ruin her perfect time card. It took her 3 years to finally get on a perfect schedule and it was still a constant challenge for the blonde. “Rubes. Just tell me … You know I can tell when you’re lying anyway..” Emma winked. 

“Yeah, yeah.. You can read minds or whatever. You’re the coolest Ems..” Ruby rolled her eyes at her best friend. 

“Fine, don’t tell me. I will find out. One way or another.” She strode past Ruby with purpose “Now let’s get to work..” Ruby rolled her eyes once more, following Emma out to the front desk to begin their busy day. 

 

\----------------------

 

Emma did find out. 

 

It was Ruby’s suggestion to bring a bottle of wine over after Henry’s bedtime. She promised she would tell her best friend then. (Ruby thought Emma may need a little alcohol in her system for this discussion.) 

 

“Rubes.. What is it? You can tell me anything?” Emma tilted her head as she swirled her white wine gently around her glass. 

Ruby glanced at Emma and shifted to get a bit more comfortable on the couch. “Okay so.. I’ve been seeing someone..”

“Ruby oh my God! That’s awesome!” Emma exclaimed. She wanted nothing more than her friend to find love and happiness. Ruby deserved it more than anyone. “Who is he?!”

Ruby took a swig of her wine and glanced back over to Emma “Well - the thing is - it’s not exactly a he?” she almost whispered.. Emma had to listen carefully to understand where Ruby was going with that statement. The blonde blinked. 

“Oh. Oh!” blinking again, Emma grabbed Ruby’s hands. “That’s great Rubes! I just - I didn’t know you were -”

“Bi. Yeah..” Ruby gently cut her off. “I guess I just never told you because I had only been with Jeremy in the 7 years you’ve known me and..”  
“It’s okay..” Emma smiled, reassuring her “I totally get why you never mentioned it. I just.. I want you to know the gender of the person you date doesn’t matter to me? I only care if you’re happy and treated as well as you should be. Guy, girl.. No matter who you date, they better realize what an amazing, caring person they have.”

Ruby’s eyes filled with tears. Emotional moments like this with Emma were few and far between. “Thank you, Ems..” Ruby wiped her tears and squeezed Emma’s hands fondly. “I promise, this one is already better than that last..” she snickered. 

Emma laughed back. “Good.. because Jeremy was pretty much a jerk. I tried to not say anything for so long..”

Ruby laughed even harder “It’s cool Ems. You definitely hinted that you felt that way after I caught you glaring at him on a few occasions.   
He was a jerk, huh..”

“Definitely. Hey Rubes?” Emma questioned

“Yeah?”

“Who is the girl!?” Emma quietly exclaimed not wanting to wake her son just down the hall.

 

\-----------------------------

 

Emma collapsed onto her still made bed and exhaled slowly. It had been a long week. She was more than pleased that it was finally the weekend. And a Holiday weekend to top it off. Despite the certain exhaustion that Halloween Monday would bring, it was still a relief. She rolled over and checked the clock, reading nearly one am. She groaned and pulled the covers down to nestle into her bed properly. 

Ruby had left just ten minutes ago and boy did she talk Emma’s ear off. Emma was of course, so ecstatic that Ruby had found someone. Although, Ruby tends to become extremely chatty when a new love has come into her life. Emma couldn’t be more thrilled that her best friend finally found someone who seemed to be somewhat sane, and even really sweet by the sound of Ruby’s description of her. Emma currently just wished her friend had discussed her new found relationship at a more appropriate hour. She shook her head at her thoughts. That was her exhaustion getting to her. 

She _was_ happy for Ruby.   
She deserved the world. And Belle sounded like a sweetheart. She told Ruby that she couldn’t wait to meet her, following Ruby’s invitation to hang out with them that weekend or on Halloween night. Emma sighed again, thinking how everyone around her seemed to be beginning new relationships. Even Henry’s teacher was apparently now dating someone via long distance after a customarily nosey Henry asked her last week if she was married. Emma tilted her head at that thought. 

Henry had actually been asking a lot about marriage lately. 

She wondered what that was about. Should she bring that up? Perhaps it was a phase.. But was that a common phase for a five year old? Considering his mother was single his whole life, she supposed it was not that far fetched. Maybe Henry wanted to expand their little family? Emma frowned at that, a small shred of inadequacy seeping in. Was she not enough for him? Maybe it was just the other kids in the class getting to him. There was a definite probability that most of his peers had two parents. Perhaps he was just comparing. Before her thoughts consumed her, Emma decided maybe this was a question for CafeMom.

 

_‘Shit, CafeMom! I totally forgot to apologize for my rambling yesterday..’_ At that thought, Emma popped back up with her IPhone in hand to quickly open her app. 

 

Before she could begin typing an apology, her breath hitched reading Regina’s latest message. Emma honestly didn’t expect the Mayor to even reply to her last message. It was, in Emma’s eyes, pretty pathetic. Not only had Regina replied quickly, but she was incredibly supportive. Other than being absolutely irate at Henry’s father for leaving them like he had, the message contained the kindest words anyone had ever spoken to her. Or typed. Whichever. 

Emma’s eyes filled with tears as she read through the lovely message of encouragement and hope. How Emma and Henry had deserved so much more from someone they loved. How Emma was so strong and admirable for picking up and moving on. How she had hoped to become half the mother Emma was. How she was an inspiration for overcoming such obstacles. How she deserved to be loved by the families who threw her away like loose change. How she deserved love in general. 

The blonde wiped her tears, not realizing just how many had spilled whilst reading. 

She breathed deeply before wondering how exactly to reply to this message. Emma was in no way as eloquent with her words. Regina had typed as if her fingers had the beautiful words already flowing through them. Any message Emma could write back wouldn’t hold a candle to those passionate words. 

 

Her brow furrowed as she realized Regina was amazing in almost every way possible. 

From her humor to her elegance, her biting sarcasm to her kind-hearted demeanor, her acceptance and support of Emma’s life circumstances despite being so obviously superior to the blonde. The way she would attempt to sound callous one day and then the next, type out the most captivating words Emma had ever read. Emma smiled. 

Regina was absolutely something special. 

 

Emma tried her hardest to reply to the Mayor’s message with the words she deserved to hear. It, of course, was not nearly as eloquent. But it was the best Emma had. 

Upon finishing the message with her typical ‘your b.f.f., Emma’, she decided to throw one more sentence onto the last paragraph first. 

Her face reddened, questioning to herself whether or not it was too brazen of her. 

Maybe Regina would take it the wrong way? Maybe it would come off somewhat creepy even? 

She bit her lip in contemplation. 

 

Blame the 3 glasses of white wine.   
Blame the exhaustion clouding her mind.   
Blame Regina’s beautiful words that seemed to embolden the blonde. 

 

Whatever the reason, Emma clicked send. 

 

\--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Wow guys.. so it's been a while sorry! Hoping to pick up some speed here but life keeps getting in the way lol.
> 
> As always, Hope you enjoyed and Thanks for reading <3


	14. Chapter 14

~~~~~~~

 

_“We should video call one day!”_

 

Regina blinked reading the words for the eleventh time that afternoon. 

Video call? 

Her palms were sweating just thinking about it. She had never video called someone before. The few people actually in her life were a stone’s throw down her street. There was never a need. Now, she wished there had been some reason to video call someone before. The brunette wasn’t even sure how to video call. She had a smartphone. It must be on there somewhere. Or perhaps her laptop? Did you just call someone and there was an option of adding a video to the call? Did her laptop even have a camera? Good Lord she felt old. She was sure to embarrass herself. 

Emma certainly knew how to video call or she wouldn’t have suggested it. Of course she knew, she was 28 for goodness sake. Regina wiped her palms on her slacks as she thought of how a video call with Emma might actually play out. 

Would their dialogue flow as smoothly on call as it did when they typed messages to each other? Would there be awkward silences? Didn’t you need a decent wifi connection for video calls? Regina was assuming her office would have a preferable connection due to its location in town. The Mayor’s heart plummeted as she suddenly realized something. 

A video call. 

A video call. Meaning Emma would be able to _see_ her. Emma didn’t know what she looked like. There were no pictures on the CafeMom website, only usernames and sometimes the age of the member. Regina’s hands began clamming up once again at the thought of Emma seeing her on video. She wasn’t sure why, but it made her feel vulnerable. Her stomach felt as if it was somersaulting. The brunette quickly stood from the kitchen table, leaving her steaming coffee as she began pacing.

What should she say?   
She couldn’t agree to this, could she?  
Emma would probably start laughing at the Mayor’s dismal attempts to grasp technology.   
The other woman was certainly more cultivated in that area. Maybe she would find it amusing? 

 

Regina stalled her pacing as she had another thought. She didn’t know what Emma looked like either. 

 

And that was it.   
Curiosity killed the cat. 

How had they never exchanged photos? She surmised that this wasn’t the most conventional friendship. They had learned so many things about each other in their two months of messaging, but never once had mentioned that subject. Regina supposed it was time. 

 

She took a sip of her now lukewarm coffee and turned her laptop back around. _‘Okay Emma, video calling it is..’_ she nervously thought as she began typing her reply. 

 

\------------------------------

 

_“So, Belle.. What is it that you do again?”_ Emma asked while sipping her hot chocolate. 

 

She and Henry decided to meet Ruby and Belle at the local cafe for lunch before heading over to the aquarium for the rest of their Sunday afternoon. As well as dinosaurs, Henry had a love for sharks. ‘What is it with the kid loving everything with sharp teeth?’ Emma questioned to herself when he had suggested the aquarium that morning. The blonde glanced over to him, mentally cringing at the very large bite of cheeseburger he attempted to devour.

 

_“I’m actually a librarian at the Vancouver Public Library”_ she smiled back at Emma while holding Ruby’s hand under the table… Ruby glancing adoringly at the auburn haired woman. 

 

_“No way! That is so awesome.. Henry and I love that library.. Don’t we kid?”_ She placed her hand on his shoulder for his affirmation.

 

_“Uh huh m’ma..”_ He attempted to agree while finishing the last of the large bite of burger. Emma raised an eyebrow at him and Henry knew what that meant. _“Sorry momma..”_ He stated after finally swallowing. _“I love the libary Auntie Belle!”_ He grinned while picking up a fry. 

 

Belle’s face noticeably softened at the unexpected term of endearment. Emma smiled, knowing her son truly had a gift of making anyone’s day better. _“He gets attached quickly..”_ she whispered to the women sitting across from her. Henry of course, was too focused on dipping his fry in an obscene amount of ketchup to notice his mom’s statement. 

 

Belle gave Emma a watery smile and then looked at Henry. _“That’s great Henry! Maybe I can show you around our super secret room one time.. There are a ton of books that are hidden from all of the other kids in the city. You have to know the librarian to access them..”_ she winked.   
Henry looked up, shocked that he would be so special as to make it into the ‘super secret room’. 

 

_“Really?!”_ he exclaimed _“Can I go mom?!”_ He looked over to Emma with a half-hearted attempt of using one of his puppy dog faces, unsure as to how many he actually had remaining for the year. 

 

Emma laughed _“Don’t worry kid, you can put the attempted puppy dog face away.. I’m never going to oppose you going to the library.”_ Winking at Henry then smiling over to Belle, _“Thank you, Belle.. I’m sure Mr. Booklover here will be more than happy to check out some parts of the library he’s never seen before..”_

 

Belle returned her smile and nodded as Ruby kissed her cheek fondly. Belle blushed, looking over at Ruby and returning the loving gaze. Emma watched them from the other side of the table, a feeling of comfort and warmth taking over as she witnessed her best friend falling in love. Ruby hadn’t said that yet of course, but Emma knew. 

 

Emma’s gaze lingered past the couple toward the front door of the cafe as she imagined what a wonderful feeling that would be. 

To fall in love again. 

 

Henry suddenly reached in front of her for his drink, nearly knocking it over and pulling her from her trance. She quickly stopped the glass of milk from spilling over, before lifting it and handing it slowly to her son.

 

Emma cleared her throat and smiled again. _“So Belle, where in Australia are you from?”_

 

\------------------

 

They finished their respective lunches and decided to all get together again tomorrow for Halloween. Ruby was a bit hesitant to ask, as it was typically just herself and the Swan family celebrating together. Emma reassured her best friend; the more the merrier. Emma also genuinely liked Belle. Not only was she intelligent and kind, but she took an unlikely interest in Henry. That was something Emma was definitely not accustomed to with Ruby’s significant others. 

And after a fun outing with his Auntie Ruby (and Auntie Belle), a lengthy afternoon at the aquarium and a pizza night at home, Henry was completely drained. 

 

So drained that after his mom suggested an early night, he actually conceded. Tucking her little boy under his covers, Emma reached a hand out to smooth out his still-damp hair from his bedtime bath. She smiled at his cherubic face. She always loved how adorable he looked when he was sleepy.. It was almost like she was looking at his 18 month old face again. 

 

_“Okay kiddo, what book tonight?”_

 

_“Hmmm..”_ tapping his usual finger on his chin in thought (he must have learned that somewhere but Emma had no clue where). 

_“I know!..”_ he looked at his mom with a wry smile, hoping she’d know the exact book he meant. 

 

She of course knew. _“Alright mister.. But again, just one story out of the book okay?”_ She picked up the large tome from his shelf. ‘Once Upon a Time’ was always placed at the front. It was regularly the little man’s first pick. 

_“Let me guess, Snow White and the Seven Dwarves again?”_ Emma chuckled at her son’s enthusiastic nod and sat at the edge of his bed to begin reading words she had come to know by heart. 

 

\------------------

Emma read over Regina’s words. 

Very. Slowly. 

She couldn’t believe it. Regina had agreed to video call? Emma blinked and looked up from the message. 

_“Well, shit.”_ she whispered to herself. 

Henry had been asleep for the last hour and Emma was currently sitting against her headboard in bed enjoying her nightly mug of cocoa. Well, she was enjoying it before reading the Mayor’s message.

Emma was not expecting Regina to reply with a yes… she honestly thought Regina would think Emma was joking or being nonsensical. Not that she didn’t want to video call the Mayor, she absolutely did. Now that it was probable, though, she was nervous. 

 

Insanely nervous. 

 

They never even spoke to each other on the phone before? Their conversations were typed words and careful thoughts. For the most part at least. Emma knew she would sometimes ramble on in their messages or type things before thinking thoroughly first. Hence the video call subject. But those spontaneously typed words were nothing compared to speaking to the Mayor in person. Regina thought she had a word vomit problem? Well Emma was the queen of that. She could only fathom what kind of incoherent words would escape her mouth when calling her friend for the first time. Video calling, to top that off. 

 

Emma sighed and sunk into her mattress.   
Pulling her duvet over her head with a huff, her thoughts took over. 

 

_‘Why did I have to ask that? Well played, Emma. Well played… “Hi Regina you’ve only known me for 8 weeks; let’s video call!”_

_I’m such an idiot. That damn wine made me type that question...’_

 

She rolled onto her side and pulled the covers off of her face. 

 

_‘What if - what if I try to find her Facebook or Instagram first? Maybe I can at least see who I’ll be video calling?_

_Ugh, that’s cheating. Why does that feel like cheating? This isn’t a game?_

_But if it was, that would definitely be cheating…’_

 

Emma huffed again, rubbing her hands over her face. 

 

_‘This is stupid. I’m just overreacting._

_It will be fine._

_It’s just a video call, right? It will be inevitably super awkward.. We’ll say hi, chat for a second about the weather, then say bye._

_And agree to never call again because it was super awkward…’_ she trailed off. 

 

Emm rolled over once more before closing her eyes. Just as she had a thought that she should sit back up to finally respond to Regina’s message, sleep claimed her. 

 

\----------

 

_“Bye Miss Mills!”_ Lucas yelled as he squeezed Regina’s legs tightly. 

 

Kathryn and Lucas were dropping Regina back off at home after a fun filled day together. A movie at noon, followed by a stroll along the pier and a late lunch at Granny’s Diner. Regina glanced down, gently patting Lucas’s head _“Goodbye Lucas”_. She smiled as he embraced her even tighter. _“I’ll see you soon.. don’t worry.”_

 

Lucas looked up to her with a frown, slowly turning into a smile at the promise of seeing his new best friend soon. _“Promise Auntie Regina?”_

 

The Mayor blinked up with her mouth agape and glanced over to Kathryn. She shrugged and laughed out loud for a moment before addressing her son. _“Lucas, did you just call Miss Mills Auntie Regina?”_

 

_“Oh.. sorry was I not supposed to?..”_ Lucas looked back and forth between the two women, invariably unsure of his decisions. 

 

_“No! No that’s perfectly fine sweetheart… I just..”_ Regina trailed off, attempting to hold back her tears. _“I’ve just never been called an Auntie before..”_ She smiled down at Lucas, swiping under her eyes. Lucas smiled back. 

 

_“Well, you are my Auntie now!”_ He nodded firmly, giving her one more bear hug. 

 

She returned his embrace with a watery smile and a kiss to the top of his head. She glanced back over at Kathryn. _“Well, it seems Lucas has made up his mind, Auntie Regina.”_ she said blinking at the Mayor, making her laugh. _“We better get home, kiddo.. Dad is probably looking forward to seeing you after spending a very debilitating day with your Grandma Nancy..”_ she laughed.   
Lucas ran over to his mom to both make their way back to the car. 

 

_“Momma.. What does debilitating mean?”_

 

_“Oh, sort of like exhausting or tiring?”_

 

_“So Grandma Nancy makes Daddy tired?”_ he looked up at her, befuddled. 

 

_“Uhh, yes.. In a good way!..”_ she trailed off, throwing Regina an uneasy smile and shaking her head at her slip up. 

 

Regina laughed at her poor choice of words, knowing there was a very real chance Lucas would be informing Kathryn’s mother-in-law of how she thought she was a “debilitating” person. Kathryn ushered her inquisitive son to the back of the car. _“C’mon smarty pants, let’s go home..”_

 

_“Bye Auntie Regina.. I’ll miss you!”_ he shouted at her loudly (too loudly for being a small distance of about 15 feet from the Mayor) whilst getting into the car and strapping on his seat belt. 

 

_“Goodbye Lucas.. I’ll see you soon!”_

_“See you on Monday, Auntie Regina..”_ Kathryn laughed as she jumped into the driver’s seat. 

Regina waved as they pulled out of her driveway and made her way back into the pleasantly toasty house. She slid off her pea-coat and slipped off her heels, placing them both neatly into the front hall closet before making her way into the kitchen to prepare her dinner. 

 

\-------------

 

Regina paid no mind to the documentary blabbering on in the background. Following a hot bath and a charcoal face mask, she was snuggled up on her chaise lounge with a steaming mug of chamomile. This was a perfect opportunity to finally relax on a cold fall evening. But there was one problem.

 

She couldn’t relax. 

 

In fact, she was unnerved. 

She stood up to retrieve her laptop from her study, unsure as if the message perhaps just didn’t send through her IPhone. There was no sensible reason for that of course.. But you just never know with cell phones. She sat back down onto her chaise and opened her laptop to check CafeMom. She glanced up with a frown. No reply. 

 

She knew it was foolish to be upset. Anyone else would have thought her crazy to be upset for this reason. A friend hadn’t returned her messages. Any other friendship and she wouldn’t have even given that a second thought, Right? 

 

She sighed to herself realizing she was just being silly. 

 

She realized why her worry began to rear its ugly head. She sat straight up as thoughts clouded her mind of Emma’s past messages. Her promises. They had previously discussed their possible doubts and worries resulting from issues with past friendships. Emma promised to keep up to date with their messages on a daily basis. Regina thought perhaps she was acting uncharacteristically clingy, but Emma refused to listen. 

 

_“Regina, you’ve had so many people in your past give up on you.. I don’t plan to be one of them. I know we haven’t been friends for long.. But I can tell you could really use a reliable person around. To be honest, I could too.  
I’ll be right here for you.”_

 

Regina thought back to the moment she read those words. 

 

They surprised her to say the least. She would be lying if she wasn’t at first thrilled about someone saying they would be there for her no matter what. 

 

Then reality kicked back in. 

Reminding Regina with a bitter but metaphorical kick to the gut just how improbable those words were. At the time, the Mayor shrugged off the statement with as much as a _“Thank you, Emma”_ , keeping in mind just how often she had been wronged by friendly faces in her past. Seeing as she and Emma had only known one another for about a month at the time notably left Regina feeling unenthusiastic about her friend’s promise. So she lightly smirked at Emma’s earnest, yet naive notion of commitment between friends… and went on with her day. 

 

She _wanted_ to believe Emma. She really did.

 

And as the weeks went on, Regina believed Emma more and more. The two women fell into somewhat of a routine; the Mayor responding to Emma’s message from the night before due to their three hour time difference. And up to this point, it was indeed nearly every single night. She knew she probably came off overeager. But for God knows what reason, the Mayor just didn’t care.

 

In all retrospect, tonight shouldn’t have come as a surprise to her. What’s the big deal, really? Emma broke her promise. 

 

Anyway, it had only been two days. She obviously has a life outside of answering Regina’s silly messages. She has friends, a son, a job in the city. She and Emma have been friends for a couple of _months_ for goodness sake. 

 

Regina knew she should probably calm the hell down.

 

But for some reason... that just wasn’t happening. 

She abruptly stood up from the chaise and began pacing the much too large family room. All reason leaving her thoughts, her mind wandered to what could cause Emma to not reply. 

 

_‘She didn’t mention any weekend plans, really?..’_ the Mayor surmised  
 _‘.. something about meeting her friend’s new significant other and having a day out with Henry..’_

A thought then occurred to her.

 

_‘Oh my goodness, Henry! Has something happened to Henry?’_

Regina began pacing a bit faster now, her mind unsettled with possibilities.

 

_‘No. He’s a perfectly healthy little boy, I’m sure he is fine._

_Or perhaps I scared Emma off by accepting the invitation for the video call? Maybe I should have declined it. But I really do want to speak to her. Face to face. Maybe she doesn’t want that after all?_

_I’m definitely overreacting._

_Ugh, please let Henry be okay..’_

 

Regina stopped pacing and rolled her eyes.

 

_‘This won’t do. Pacing doesn’t help anything..’_

 

She checked the time and realized it was still quite early in the evening. Sighing at her scattered behavior, the Mayor figured it was time for a distraction.   
She made her way into her grandiose kitchen, pulling out all she needed to make a batch of her apple turnovers. Her honeycrisp tree was at its peak and producing its best fruit and Regina did her best to not waste any of the apples. Her turnover recipe was one of her favorite ways to do so.

 

Regina turned the radio on, searching for her usual jazz station to help her relax. She began mixing and kneading her dough. As that rose for a moment, Regina turned to the stove to cook down her apples. She added a dash of cinnamon and sugar, and soon enough, the kitchen took on the lovely and familiar smell of her turnovers. The mayor swayed her hips to the music as she formed her dough and filled each turnover with the apple mixture. 

 

Before she knew it she was sliding the tray of apple turnovers into the oven to bake. She set the timer and removed her apron with a sigh.

 

Baking had helped. It really had. For a bit at least. 

 

As she strolled from the kitchen to the den, thoughts of Emma and Henry clouded her mind once more.

 

This was going to be a long night.

 

~~~~~~


	15. Chapter 15

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hi readers!
> 
> Sorry, a somewhat short chapter here but I Just wanted to thank everyone for the kudos and comments. They make my day! 
> 
>  
> 
> Appreciate everyone reading and following along.. and enjoy :)

 

 

_“Mom... Momm… Mooooommmm!”_

 

Henry jumped up and down on Emma’s bed with excitement, flinging his arms in the air. His mom on the other hand, was not as enthused. Emma wrapped the blankets around herself a bit tighter and moaned. 

 

“Henry, KID. What on Earth are you doing.”

 

Henry continued to bounce and squeal with excitement, not letting up even a little bit. Emma was actually shocked at the intensity of his jumps. She could have sworn her body was being lifted off of the bed as a result of the force. 

 

“Mooommmm!! It’s Halloweeeeen!! Henry giggled as finally his bouncing slowed to a stop. Emma glanced at his adorably exuberant face from behind her blanket fort. She just could. Not. Help it. She burst into laughter and pulled him down onto the bed, utterly destroying the fort she unintentionally created in her sleep. Henry’s giggles rang loudly through the bedroom, bouncing off the walls. 

 

“Mooommm no not again!!” The five year old squealed helplessly as his mom tickled his stomach and neck before moving to his under arms. 

 

“This is what little boys get when they wake up their moms at 6am! Tickles!!” 

 

Emma continued until Henry showed signs of running out of breath from giggling so hard. She receded and the pair fell back onto the fluffy blankets and plushy pillows together, still laughing. 

 

“But momma, I don’t think you heard meeee… it’s -” 

 

“I know, I know kid… It’s HALLOWEEN!!” The blonde showed Henry her biggest smile as her eyes grew big and her hands waved around enthusiastically to somewhat mimic his excitement. 

 

“Yeah Mom it is and I’m sooo excited and I’m going to have lotsa sweets and I’m gonna dress up in my Locaraptor costume and growl at everybody when I go trick or treating to get my sweets that I’m gonna eat for dinner and Auntie Rubes will be there and Auntie Belle will be there and you’ll be there too Momma and are you gonna dress up too mom because? -” 

 

“WOAH. Henry. Slow down, kid! -” Emma was on the verge of bursting out into laughter again at Henry’s animated rant. 

“Hold up for a sec. I know you’re excited kiddo and that’s awesome.. Let’s just get some things straight here. Yes sir, you will be getting tons of sweets and chocolate but that does NOT mean you will be eating that for dinner. We will still all have dinner together as we normally would. You can eat your sweets after dinner and trick or treating. As for Auntie Rubes and Belle… They are going to let me know this morning if they can make it tonight, kiddo. It could just be you and I still… If that’s okay that is..” She winked and tickled Henry on the belly for a moment before lying back on the bed again. 

 

“That’s okay Momma.. As long as you’re with me! But are you suuuurree no sweets for dinner?” Henry attempted to wink back and it was probably the cutest thing Emma had ever seen. She laughed at his silliness once again. 

 

“Oh, I am more than suuurreee about that, kid. Henry the ‘Lacaraptor’ will be bouncing off of the walls the entire evening if you eat too many sweets. A good handful after dinner should be just enough for you. And if you’d like, you can take a piece to school in your lunchbox for the rest of the week? That way you won’t miss out on your chocolate consumption.” 

 

“Really, momma!? Thanks!” 

 

“Really, kid. Now let’s go get ready for school and get you into your costume!” 

 

They chased each other down the hallway, roaring and laughing and practicing for Henry’s role as a Velociraptor for the rest of the day. 

 

\-------------------------------------

 

“C’mon guys, let’s go!!” Henry bounded to the next house with just as much momentum as he did to the first house they visited and they were probably on house number 27, here. The girls were slowly but surely dragging themselves towards 7715 Hudson Street to watch Henry enthusiastically knock on the door, resulting in an extremely loud and boisterous “HAPPY HALLOWEEN!”

 

Emma huffed and came to a halt on the sidewalk outside of the white house with a light blue door, knowing that the race would soon be on again. She tried to catch her breath for a moment before Ruby placed her elbow on the blonde’s shoulder to stop herself from falling to the ground, Emma could only presume. Belle came trotting behind them, placing her hands on her knees and bending over to catch her breath. 

 

“Swan. What on Earth did you give this kid today?! Redbull and sugar cubes?!”

 

“Sorry, guys but this is literally what happens when you put Henry and Halloween together. I probably should have warned you…”

 

“Ya think?!” Ruby stood up straight, wiping the beads of sweat from her forehead. They were all perspiring more than one normally would given the brisk autumn temperature and windy evening. 

 

“It’s okay, Emma, really. I get how exciting this night can be for children and it does only come around once a year. Right Ruby?” Belle winked and looked knowingly at her girlfriend, hoping to lighten her somewhat drained mood. Ruby smiled back at Belle and rolled her eyes playfully. 

 

“I suppose you’re right, babe..” Ruby yanked Belle over to her as she giggled and squirmed in her arms. Ruby began planting kisses on her head and cheeks as Belle continued to laugh and relish in the attention. 

 

They were pulled out of their loving moment by a very loud: “GET A ROOM!!”

 

For a moment, Ruby was half expecting the culprit of those words to be Emma as usual. Surprised was an understatement as all three women turned their heads toward the actual speaker of the sentence. 

 

Henry was grinning wildly; his velociraptor mask lifted over his head with one hand and an open Crispy Crunch bar in the other. 

 

“Henry Swan?! Did you just say get a room!?” Emma’s mouth was opened in shock at her son’s proclamation. Ruby and Belle were doubled over laughing with tears in their eyes and Emma could not _believe_ her five year old would say something like that. He was smart, but c’mon.  
“Where did you hear that from, kid.. Oh my gosh..”

 

Henry simply shrugged his shoulders and took a colossal bite from his candy bar, making his way down the sidewalk to the next house. Emma looked back, wide-eyed at her friends and shaking her head in disbelief. Ruby, still laughing, swung her arm over Emma’s shoulders as they all followed Henry to the next candy filled residence.

 

“Well if there were any doubts before that Henry was your kid? We just extinguished those entirely, Swan…”

 

\---------------------------------------

 

Emma flopped onto her bed, her head landing with impressive force in between her pillows lining the headboard. She allowed her body to relax for a moment. Finally. 

 

Emma loved Halloween. 

 

She really did. 

 

The kids (particularly her own) dashing around in excitement and intrigue in their little costumes they chose… The pumpkin carving.. The creepy houses decked out in all things spooky, ready to greet trick or treaters.. The time with friends and family ..and coming back home to watch Henry’s eyes light up as he enthusiastically emptied his bag to see just how much his efforts paid off.. Even the small stash of chocolate Emma inevitably snuck from the stash to hide in her bedside drawer every year (because Henry didn’t need _all_ of the chocolate, surely.. And after all, she worked hard for it too). 

 

Emma loved Halloween. But holy hell was it exhausting. 

 

She sighed and rolled over in her bed, grabbing a mini snickers bar out of the top drawer. She sat back and hummed as the chocolate took over her taste buds realizing that was just what she needed. _’Thanks, Henry’_ she laughed quietly to herself. 

 

Just then, her phone pinged, alerting her to her messages she has missed from the weekend. Emma finished her bar and set the wrapper on the desk to grab her phone. She laid back down to scroll through her emails, replying to a few of them here and there. As she was finishing the list of emails, she scrolled past an email from a familiar website.

 

"Shit! Cafe Mom.. 

_Shit, Regina!”_

 

Emma immediately stood up and tossed her phone to the foot of the bed. Taking long strides to reach her desk, she flipped open her laptop to log into Cafe Mom. 

 

 _C’mon c’mon c’monnn.._ Emma sat down quickly on the chair in front of her desk, her leg bouncing in anticipation while waiting for the login wheel to finish spinning. 

 

The page finally loaded after what felt like forever and Emma immediately clicked on her message board with Regina. 

 

 _”Shit…”_ Emma sighed as she read through Regina’s last message from Friday night. That one in particular read normally.. Regina telling Emma a bit about her weekend to come and replying to Emma’s weekend plans. She wished Emma good luck with meeting her best friend’s girlfriend and was excited for Henry to have a fun weekend out. Her message ended with a “Talk to you tomorrow, Emma!” Followed by a heart emoji. 

 

Emma frowned and closed her eyes. 

 

There were 2 more messages after that. And those broke Emma that much more. 

________

 

**(Message 2) Sunday Oct 30th: “Hi Emma! You didn’t message last night at all, so it seems as if you and Henry had a wonderful day! I assume everything went well. I find myself missing the usual silliness and humor of your reply this evening, but I will hopefully talk to you tomorrow :)”**

 

**(Message 3) Monday Oct 31: “So I’ve been told before that I’m a bit melodramatic dear, but I am honestly becoming slightly worried.. I hope everything is okay with you and Henry both..”**

_________

 

”Ugghhh.. How could I forget?! What was I thinking. It was a busy weekend, yes.. But I broke my promise and I absolutely hate breaking promises and Regina does not deserve that and -” 

 

And before she knew it, Emma was clicking the video icon. 

 

Clicking the video icon and video calling Regina. 

 

_Video calling Regina._

 

 

Emma quickly checked the time, reading 9:18pm. She mentally and quite spastically figured that meant it was currently 6:18 in Maine and what on Earth was she doing?! She hadn’t planned this at all. She hadn’t warned Regina and she certainly hadn’t prepared herself for this call. Her leg began tapping at a rapid pace as the call rang throughout the room, permeating the air with all of the tension that Emma was currently feeling. She wasn’t sure what she was thinking exactly. She just had to reassure Regina that everything was okay and that she was sorry and that she never breaks her promises and that - . 

Before her thoughts could continue and cloud her mind, the ringing ceased and the video screen popped up.

 

Emma held her breath as her heart thumped expeditiously in her chest. 

 

_"Emma??"_

 

 

\------------------------


	16. Chapter 16

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Good morning lovely readers! 
> 
> I hope everyone enjoys the new update.. especially after that annoying cliff hanger 
> 
> (this writer is the _worst_ amirite??) 
> 
> ;)

 

_Emma??_

 

\---

 

Emma couldn’t think. 

Couldn’t breath. 

 

There were sounds currently escaping Regina’s mouth but Emma couldn’t register them. It was as if she was stuck in some magnetic force-field of shock. She knew Regina’s mouth was moving, but the blonde was absolutely star struck. 

 

Regina was, without a doubt, the most stunning person Emma had ever laid eyes on. 

 

Emma felt her palms clam up and her mouth hang open, realizing she needed to snap out of her shocked state. Her words. Focus on her _words_ Emma.. 

 

Emma blinked and looked into Regina’s eyes. Truly into her eyes for the first time. They were unbelievably beautiful but also full of absolute concern and good lord the whole reason of calling Regina was to _ease_ her worry. 

Great job, Swan. 

 

”Re-Regina?”

 

”Emma, thank goodness… are you okay??” Regina’s concern didn’t falter as she waited for the blonde to respond patiently. 

 

”Yes, I-I’m fine, I - .. I’m so sorry..”

 

Regina laughed. And Emma’s insides were now a melted pool of emotional goop hearing the brunette’s laughter emanating the silence of her room for the first time. 

 

”For what Miss Swan? For not responding to my messages or for not informing me that a video call would be taking place this evening?”

 

”Ermm… both?” Emma half-smiled somewhat awkwardly, internally chastising herself for already being yelled at by the brunette when they had only been on video call for about 45 seconds.  
Regina laughed aloud again, this time her head thrown back as she laughed. 

 

It was an absolutely radiating site and Emma was entranced yet again. She had to literally _force_ herself to speak and not stay in her own head this time. 

 

”So…”

 

Okay. So she didn’t promise she would say _much_ of something. 

 

 

Regina smiled back and Emma could have _sworn_ she saw a light blush to her cheeks and holy shit could this woman be more perfect? Honestly?!  


 

”So….”

 

Emma cleared her throat and realized she should probably get this conversation moving seeing as she had been the one to call and had actually extracted about 7 spoken words so far. But just as she opened her mouth to speak, Regina spoke up.

 

”Emma.. Why did you call?”

 

Regina’s expression showed combination of concern and uncertainty .. Or perhaps even vulnerability…

 

Before thinking, the blonde blurted out:

 

“I didn’t think you’d answer..”

 

Of course, that proclamation caused Regina’s eyebrows to furrow even more with confusion. And oh my God was that a hurtful expression? _God Dammit, Swan!_

 

”What? Did you not want to see me? Was the call an accident or something? Because-”

 

”No! No. Of course I did, I…” Emma took a deep breath before continuing. She was so overwhelmed and she wasn’t exactly sure why, but she needed to talk to Regina before she upset her any further. 

 

”Of course I wanted to see you, Gina. I’m just really, really nervous. I’m sorry..”

 

Regina’s expression turned lighter after hearing Emma’s words. ”It’s okay.. I’m nervous too. Especially due to someone not warning me about this video call…” Regina shot a sly look Emma’s direction and the blonde couldn’t even blame her. The call was completely out of nowhere. And for a moment, Emma truly thought Regina wouldn’t answer. 

 

“Well, you being nervous as well makes me feel a little bit better to be honest..” Emma laughed “And again, I am so sorry about randomly video calling you out of nowhere. This wasn’t planned, it’s just - … I just..”

 

Emma sighed again and looked Regina in the eyes. “I saw your messages from the weekend..”

 

Emma saw Regina’s eyebrows raise and her mouth form into an o-shape. She must have understood, but let the blonde continue. 

 

“I’m sorry about this weekend as well.. I was just so busy and the time just sped by. I know that’s not any excuse because I promised you. I promised you I would contact you more often and I made you worry and I just feel so horrible because I never want to break a promise especially with you and as soon as I saw your messages I just flipped out and ran to the computer and -”

 

“Emma!… Emma.” The blonde glanced up at the brunette apologetically. She realized a little too late that she was rambling. 

 

“It’s okay, Emma… I understand. Life gets away with us. I’m honestly just glad you and Henry are okay.  
Wait, Henry is okay right?!..”

 

“Yes! Yes, he’s okay. More than okay, actually.. His belly is currently full of about a pound and a half of Halloween chocolate..”

 

The women both laughed, happy that the mood seemed to lighten instantaneously. 

 

“Thank goodness. I’d love to hear about your Halloween night. But first, can I ask?..”

 

Emma tilted her head as a response to Regina’s request “What’s up?”

 

“Before, when I asked if you wanted to see me..” Emma nodded in reply, waiting for the brunette’s question to continue. 

 

“Did you call me Gina?”

 

\-----------------------------------------------------

 

Regina stood up and made her way around her office desk, pacing the center of the large room. She just ended the video call with Emma and needed to recuperate from everything that just happened. Her thoughts swirled together.. A mix of questions, explanations, uncertainties, doubts, possibilities and so many other things. The brunette wasn’t sure why exactly, but that video call with Emma was unlike any other conversation she has had with a friend before. Not that she had that many to go on, but still. Something about seeing Emma, speaking to her, laughing with her, looking at her.. It sounded ridiculous in the Mayor’s head but..

 

Something about it was.. 

Magical. 

 

Regina glanced up from her paced spot in the center of the large office and noticed how dark it was outside. She and Emma just finished their call. She was about to leave her office and close her laptop for the night when Emma’s call rang through. From what she could remember, that was around 6pm. It couldn’t be _that_ late yet?.. 

 

The Mayor walked back around her desk to check the time on her Mac book. 

 

_”10:08 pm?!”_

 

Regina’s mouth hung open in shock at how long that call lasted. What seemed like a 30 minute call was actually 4 hours. Definitely time to get home. Although, at this point she may as well sleep on the sofa in her office seeing as she will need to be back for 8 tomorrow morning. The brunette laughed and shook her head at the absurdity, grabbing the keys to her Mercedes and finally leave the office (for now). 

 

Her short drive home was encased with thoughts of only one person. 

 

Emma. 

 

Emma and her beautiful golden hair and bright green eyes. Emma and her shy smile with dimples that could melt a heart. Emma and her silly humor that made Regina throw her head back in laughter. Emma and her earnest appeal for forgiveness.. The way she ranted on, hoping Regina could absolve her for making her worry. What the blonde didn’t know was Regina immediately forgave her anyway. How could she not with those puppy dog eyes? And those impassioned words. And that pure heart.

 

 _God_ What was happening to her?! 

 

Regina pulled into her driveway and rested her head on her steering wheel sullenly. 

 

It was a video call. With a practical stranger?! 

 

Okay, Emma wasn’t a stranger at this point. But she had literally met her, what, 2 months ago? 

And not even met, just _talked._ She talked to her. 

 

Met? Well, she _met_ Emma about 4 hours ago. And now she was suddenly having all kinds of feelings about her. 

 

The circumstances and timing were especially confusing to Regina seeing as the average amount of time it took the brunette to care for someone was around 8 years. Give or take a year.

 

What was happening to her? She was becoming a softie. That was it. 

 

She wasn’t sure whether or not it was Emma who had turned her into a softie.. or maybe Katherine and Lucas.. or perhaps wanting to become a mother.. or she wasn’t exactly sure why.. 

 

But Regina was not used to the feelings that were associated with being _soft_. Her mother habituated from a young age that love was weakness. That letting people into your heart would eventually and subsequently lead to her own destruction. That instead, by protecting her heart, by turning herself into someone who never lets others in.. she would forever be immune to pain. Immune to heartbreak.

 

And until very recently, Regina lived by those words. Those lamentable words that affected the choices she had made her entire life. The friendships (or, lack thereof) from childhood into adulthood. Her relationship with her mother and father. Her boyfriends. 

 

Daniel. Her relationship with Daniel. The only love in her life other than her father. She had lost him. Lost him to that dim phrase that seemed to win out under any and every circumstance of her life. _Love is Weakness_. She snarled picturing her mother speaking those words to her over and over again. Picturing her repeating them to Daniel as he glanced longingly at Regina. She recalled his sorrowful expression when she told him they wouldn’t and couldn’t be together. It absolutely killed her at the time. But mother had a tight grip on her heart .. and her decisions. It was not up to Regina. Seventeen year old Regina with bright eyes and a naive heart in love with a boy. With a boy her mother would not approve of. Ever. 

 

She had to break it off early with him. Before they were pulled in any further by the magnetic and unrelenting force that was known as love. Her mother would have put a stop to it either way and Regina did not, no _could not_ , allow Daniel to be caused more pain than she was already going to cause him. He didn’t deserve that. He was a wonderful, kind boy…man; in Regina’s eyes. 

 

Daniel left without looking back. He left for college that summer. Left for his future. Without Regina in it. She cried for days on end. Thinking back to it now, oh how she had wished her father had been alive at the time. She wished she had him there to hold her as she sobbed. There to maybe distract her with a new recipe in the kitchen. Or take her out for ice cream. Or just be there for someone to talk to. 

 

But he wasn’t. No one had been. Certainly not her mother.. Who scoffed at her ‘melodramatic behavior’ and reminded her to straighten herself up. She was going to be a woman and a strong one at that. She did not need love. She never would. 

 

Love. Was. Weakness. 

 

Regina lifted her head from the wheel to find tears streaming down her face. It had been a while since she allowed herself to recall these moments and feelings. She pushed them to the deepest depths of her mind for so long now. And now that she was remembering, she knew one thing to be certain. One thing to be true. 

 

 _Mother was wrong._

 

Love was not weakness and she refused this notion any longer. 

 

She was a woman now and she _was_ strong. She was a hard worker with a no-nonsense attitude. She got shit done. And she was about to adopt a child. She was about to become a single parent. Do this completely on her own. And certainly better than her mother had. And now with love in her life. She was going to raise her child with all of the love and affection she never received from her own mother. She was going to give them everything. _Everything_. And love was the focus. 

 

Regina had love in her life for the past few months now… and she had never felt stronger. Lucas, Kathryn… Emma. She loved them all. 

 

Emma.

 

The mayor sucked air in sharply as her last thought reverberated in her mind. Could she love Emma? It was an absurd notion. One that she pondered momentarily in hopes of justifying exactly what was happening with her. 

 

She came to the conclusion that she certainly loved her as a friend. There was no doubt in her mind about that. Just thinking of the way Emma made her laugh was enough proof of that. She loved Kathryn as a friend as well. As she sat in her parked car alone in the middle of the night, she compared the two women in her life. Kathryn was a sweet friend and always there for her. She was a wonderful listener and extremely supportive, especially after the brunette mentioned her plan to adopt. They laughed together, planned days together and talked for hours. She had become a rock in Regina’s life. And of course, Lucas. Regina smiled. She certainly loved that little boy. 

 

She thought back to Emma now. Of course Emma had all of these lovely qualities as well. But there was something… different about her. About her friendship with her. And Regina could not figure out why. She thought about the way the blonde made her feel. Even before they video called, Emma made her giddy. _Giddy_. The mayor scoffed at how she sounded like her 17 year old self again. It was ridiculous, but true. She thought back to every time a message came in from CafeMom and the utter excitement she felt every time the app notified her. She thought about the way she had worried about her. About Emma’s well being and safety. About her son, Henry. How she had paced through the house all evening, her mind racing with possibilities as to why her messages hadn’t yet been received. 

 

She thought back to the moment she heard the ring of the video call earlier tonight. How it had sounded throughout her large office, bouncing from wall to wall. And how her heart had jumped and beat so _vigorously_ she thought it might end up in her throat. How truly stunned she had been with the realization that Emma was actually calling her. Video calling her. Without preamble. She almost hadn’t answered… out of fear and shock and anxiety and so many other reasons. But then she remembered her worries over the weekend. She was terrified to the depths that something had gone wrong. That Emma was hurt or Henry or - she didn’t want to think about it. She couldn’t. She had to know. 

 

Which was precisely why she answered the call. Completely shocked and somewhat nauseous; but she answered. 

 

And absolutely nothing.. 

No words.. 

Could describe what she felt when she saw Emma on the screen for the first time. All she knew was, she had _never_ felt this before. Never had her heart picked up speed so rapidly. Never before had her stomach fluttered to the point where she thought she might be sick right at her office desk. Never before had she laughed so hard and so effortlessly at anyone’s jokes or quips. Never had she listened so intently to someone. Noticed every little detail. 

 

She recalled taking note of the golden curls framing Emma’s face. Her dimples on display whenever she smiled. The way her eyes bore into her own when listening to the Mayor’s replies.  
As if there had been nothing more important in the world to listen to in that moment. 

 

Regina sighed

 

Whatever she was feeling for Emma. 

 

It was, at the very least, _complicated_.

 

 

 

 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I don't completely love how this chapter turned out. I feel like maybe Regina is moving too fast here? In the end I'm following my instincts with the story and character development .. but I would LOVE some feedback to know if my readers are finding this kind of .. speedy? My intention is that Regina's feelings for Emma are unlike she's had before.. but after re-reading it sounds somewhat offbeat.
> 
> It could just be me overthinking to be honest.. I tend to do that ha. 
> 
>  
> 
> *I hope everyone is enjoying the fic and a huge THANK YOU to everyone who follows along, gives kudos and comments! <3*


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hello readers ((wave)). 
> 
>  
> 
> I wanted to apologize for how long it's been since the last update. I hope I haven't lost you guys! I recently changed job positions and this one is all kinds of weird hours. Unfortunately that means less time to type :( 
> 
>  
> 
> BUT, I have managed a fairly long chapter here with a bit of dialogue between E&R in the middle. So I hope everyone enjoys!
> 
>  
> 
> Please let me know what you think (Good, bad or ugly lol) and as always, thank you for reading! <3

 

 

 

“Henry, breakfast is almost ready!” 

 

Emma flipped the last batch of pancakes over as Henry ran into the kitchen for his breakfast. 

 

They had their morning routine down pretty well. Emma finished cooking and plating as Henry walked around the island to set the table. He needed a stool to reach the counter (an Avengers stool of course that took Emma _months_ to track down) but Henry loved being independent. He knew it was hard for his mom to do everything on her own and he loved helping when he could. Like setting the table. When he suggested things himself, he noticed he got praised a lot more. 

 

A small “I’ll help mom!” sometimes made Emma’s day and Henry knew it. After all, Henry loved a little bit of praise. The brown haired boy finished setting the plates, napkins and cutlery on the table and waited for his mom to finish the last batch of pancakes. She was acting kind of strange lately, he thought. Not bad. Just .. _weird_. This was reaffirmed for him as he glanced over the island to see his mom singing to herself, even dancing a little. Henry cocked an eyebrow. His mom never sang. She always said she sounded like a ‘moose with no bell’.. Whatever that meant. But the way she said it told Henry it probably wasn’t a good thing. 

 

So why was she singing now? Henry tapped his finger on his chin, thinking of the possible reasons his mom was acting so funny. He recalled the last month and the mood in the house lately. There had been singing, dancing, laughing. A lot of laughing. He glanced back at her again and noticed that now she was doing the weird stare-y thing she does lately. She must have been waiting for the pancake to cook; but while she waited she was just _staring_ off into the distance, a lopsided grin adorning her face. She was doing that almost every day now. And Henry was beginning to worry about his mom’s odd behavior. I mean, he had seen her happy a lot in his short life.. But she was never… _Giddy_. Emma was a happy person overall, but she usually remained pretty focused on raising Henry and work. To see her dancing and singing everyday was nice and all.. But Henry wanted to know _why_. He was a curious boy, sure.. But he also knew his mom better than anyone. And something was fishy about all of this. 

 

Henry watched his mom pour him a glass of milk in his Avengers cup and place a stack of pancakes on his matching plate. As he watched her pour heaps of syrup over his pancakes while dancing and humming to no music whatsoever.. 

 

Henry had one thought..

 

_“This is an operation for me and Auntie Rubes..”_

 

\---------------------------------------------------------------

 

“Emma, hi!” 

 

“Hey Gina!” Emma went to raise her hand to wave before quickly lowering it down again. She was about to wave at the laptop. ‘What a geek’ she thought as she blushed furiously. Thank God it was hard to make out the pigmentation on the webcam. 

 

“So Miss Swan, how has your weekend been so far?”

 

“Regina, what is it with the ‘Miss Swan’? Haven’t we known each other long enough now?..” Emma laughed out loud as Regina gave her a pointed look on the other end of the call. “And my weekend’s been good, yeah..  
..Well since the last time you asked.. which was yesterday..”

Emma winked and Regina gave her an even harder stare down now. 

 

“Well, excuuuse me for being polite and periodically inquiring about your days Miss Swan. I’m such a _terrible_ friend..”

 

Emma laughed and rolled her eyes at Regina’s melodramatic response. She was so over the top; but Emma secretly loved it. 

 

“Yes. The worrsstt.” Emma winked again and was that a blush on Regina’s cheeks? Nah. That damn pigmentation was really playing with her.

 

“So, Em-ma..” 

 

And my Goddd did Emma love when Regina said her name that way. It was as if she elongated the ‘m’ and no one had ever said her name that way before. She was sure of it. Or if they had, she hadn’t noticed. At least not to the point she noticed every time Regina said it this way. Maybe it was just a Regina thing. Of course she had heard her name a million times over her entire life. It was always just a name. A fairly common one even. But when Regina said it.. It was so much more. 

 

“How is Henry? Is he looking forward to his show and tell on Monday?”

 

Emma also loved that Regina would immediately ask about Henry. The brunette never went more than 5 minutes before bringing his name up.

 

“Oh man he is _so_ looking forward to it! He is psyched. He’s bringing in his favorite storybook. This thing is huge, Gina.. you should see it..” Emma started laughing, her arms stretched out to represent the metaphorical size of the book. Laughing again, she realized she could indeed show Regina the book on call. 

“Actually, Henry is sleeping but he left the book on the couch.. I’ll be right back..” Emma jumped up from the chair and made her way out of the room and into the living room to fetch the storybook. 

Regina watched her go. _Really_ watched her go. She realized as Emma faded away from sight that she was blushing furiously. Emma’s body was gorgeous. And _toned_.. her arms especially on display this evening in a fitted tank. Regina wiped her brow and took a deep breath. She didn’t know what the hell was going on lately. They had been video calling regularly for the past two months now and Regina’s feelings were growing stronger and stronger. The thing is, she didn’t know _what the hell she was feeling_. And what it meant? The Mayor had spent the last month trying to sort through these emotions and reach an explanation.. but none had come to her. Everytime she thought she understood what she was feeling for Emma, her rational mind told her otherwise. Regina felt a _pull_ towards Emma. Emma made her feel so.. Special. Admired. Secure. Even Desired. And so many more things. Once she pondered this too long, though, her mind would tell her otherwise. That she can’t trust someone so soon. That she should be focusing on other things in her life. Her job, the adoption, readying to become a mother...

Her emotions were yo-yoing and it was beginning to get to her. 

Maybe it was time to talk to someone about this. She decided she was going to give Kathryn a call tomorrow. 

 

“Okay check this out..”

 

Regina blinked and looked up. As her thoughts clouded her mind she hadn’t noticed Emma was back on screen. 

 

“It’s 140 pages and look at these illustrations.. Isn’t this the coolest!? It has all of the traditional fairy tale stories.. Cinderella, Alice in Wonderland, Jack and the Beanstalk, Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs... That one is Henry’s favorite. He’s obsessed with the Evil Queen..” Emma laughed and flipped through the book enthusiastically, obviously keen to show Regina her and Henry’s favorite bedtime book. 

 

Regina’s face lit up with adoration. Emma was just so impassioned and jubilant to tell Regina something so simple. It was beyond darling and the brunette couldn’t help the bright smile taking over her face if she tried. 

 

“That’s amazing Emma! And that’s so funny the Evil Queen was always my favorite growing up as well. Well, that was when I was allowed to read fairy tales..” 

 

Emma’s face turned serious suddenly as she set the tome down on the desk. “What do you mean? You weren’t allowed to read fairy tales?”

 

“Well, for some time, yes. That was .. until..” Regina glanced to the side and shifted uncomfortably in her seat. She didn’t want to alter the lighthearted mood. 

 

“Until?..” 

 

Emma, of course wanted to know. The blonde always encouraged Regina to open up to her. But this was a new subject completely. Regina hadn’t tread the subject of her parents with Emma yet. And it was a heavy one.

 

At the brunette’s hesitation, Emma backtracked. “Sorry, Gina I - I don’t want to pry. I’m here if you do want to talk, obviously. But, if it’s too much we can talk about something else?”

 

Regina laughed in spite of the slightly awkward mood she caused. “Sorry, Emma.. Is-is that okay?” 

 

Emma smiled brightly back at her. “Absolutely..” 

 

\---------------------------------------

 

Emma closed the laptop and checked the time. 11:45pm. She’d be tired in the morning. But it was ohh so worth it. She jumped into bed and sighed. Talking to Regina was so easy and it was quickly becoming her favorite way to spend her days; second only to her time spent with Henry. She thought of the last month and how often they had been calling. It was nearly every single night after Henry went to sleep.. And even longer on the weekends. She thought back to how adorable it was to see Regina so sleepy on the call. For the last 30 minutes Emma insisted that they end the call so the brunette could catch some z’s. She always seemed to forget about their time difference. Regina waved her hand in dismissal of the suggestion, deeming that she was ‘fine’ for a little while longer. 

 

Cut to ten minutes later and the distinguished Mayor was bobbing her head at her desk. Emma remembered beaming as Regina mumbled something and set her head on her hand for support. “I’m just going to close my eyes for a moment, Emma..”. The blonde’s heart was practically exploding at how adorable Regina was being; but she also needed sleep. Emma could watch her sleepy, gorgeous face all night.. But she began to feel guilty for keeping her up. 

 

“Gina.. go to bed.. It’s okay..” 

 

“No, no. I’m fine…”

 

“Regina. Go to bed. This is ridiculous..” Emma laughed “C’mon Madame Mayor.. Up you go..” She waved her hands at the screen as if almost trying to lift Regina up herself somehow. 

 

“Darling, I’m fine I - “

 

Emma’s heart _jumped_. Did Regina just call her Darling?? Oh God. 

 

The words that rolled off of her tongue so smoothly seemed to jolt the brunette awake suddenly. “I - I mean, I - ...” Regina’s eyes shot open as she cleared her throat. “You’re right, yes. I should probably get to bed. Goodnight Emma..”

 

Emma was somewhat in shock still at the term of endearment. She also noticed how fidgety Regina had become. And how she was refusing to make eye contact with her. 

 

“Right, okay. Well, goodnight Gina.. We’ll talk tomorrow?” Emma smiled despite the worry she felt in the pit of her stomach. Regina still refused to look at her. 

 

“Yes. tomorrow. Goodnight Em-ma” The brunette glanced up momentarily before averting her eyes once again.

 

“Night. Sweet dreams..”

 

Before Emma could say anything else, Regina had pressed the end call button. 

 

Emma sighed again in her bed thinking about the end of their call. She wasn’t sure what to think of it to be completely honest. 

 

_”Darling”_

 

The memory of Regina’s smooth, slumber-laced voice reverberated through her mind. 

 

Well, she may not have known what to think. 

 

But she certainly knew how it made her feel. 

 

\-----------------------------------

 

“Regina, over here!..” 

 

Kathryn waved Regina over to the back corner table in Granny’s where she was currently sitting. The brunette asked her friend to meet up for brunch to chat. Kathryn was more than happy to oblige. A brunch date with her friend was exactly what the overworked mom was in need of. 

 

“Hi Kathryn, thanks for meeting me..” Regina approached the table with a smile. She removed her coat and placed it to the side of the booth with her purse. “Prosecco, Kathryn?” the Mayor laughed again realizing her friend had already ordered some bubbly for brunch. “Tough weekend?”

 

Kathryn laughed back “So sue me, I’m starting my day with Prosecco. This is the first morning away from the house and I can’t exactly pop a bottle at 11:00am in front of Lucas..” 

 

“Good point.. I suppose you’ve earned it anyway with all of your hard work.. And Lucas’s energy..” They both laughed again. 

 

The server approached the table and the girls both ordered their meals. Kathryn was pretty surprised when Regina also poured herself a glass of Prosecco. _‘I thought she didn’t day drink’_ Kathryn chuckled to herself. 

 

“So, Regina.. How have you been?” 

 

Regina glanced up from the top of the flute she was sipping from (well, gulping, in fact). 

 

“Yeah, good.. Great!” 

 

Kathryn eyed her friend suspiciously. “Great huh? Work and the adoption is going smoothly?”

 

“Yes, well work is.. You know. It never goes that smoothly in this town..” Regina laughed “But yes the adoption is processing along as it should. I have my first home visit before Christmas..”  
She took another semi-gulp from the glass and set it down on the table. Kathryn noticed Regina was a little jittery and she seemed to be somewhat avoiding eye contact. Which was unlike the Mayor completely. 

 

“Well, that’s great! I can’t wait to hear all about it! You’ll be a momma in no time..”

 

Regina finally glanced up at Kathryn with a watery smile “Thank you, Kathryn”

 

“Are you sure you’re okay, Regina? Is there something on your mind?” Kathryn knew to tread lightly. Regina was like an onion, and she knew if she peeled the layers back too quickly Regina would retreat.  
Regina drank the last of the Prosecco; knowing she needed to talk to Kathryn about this eventually. She needed advice. Or guidance. Or definitely at least a supportive friend to listen. 

 

“Yes, something is on my mind..”

 

Kathryn was looking back expectantly, her eyes full of understanding and dear God this was so embarrassing. She was about to ask her friend advice. Love advice. Or like advice? She didn’t know. And to top that off, it was advice on a woman. A woman she had never met and had only spoken with on video calls and through text. A woman she was beginning to fall for when she had never been interested in women before in her life. This was ridiculous. She couldn’t do it. 

 

“What’s the matter, Regina?” Kathryn placed her hand on top of the Mayors and continued to look at her with all of the compassion in her eyes. Regina took a deep breath. 

 

“I - I have this friend..” _Oh God_

“He.. He was asking for some advice.. And I told him I would speak to you as I didn’t really know what advice to give him..”

 

Kathryn blinked and lightly pulled her hand back. “Oh?” That was not what she was expecting. “Advice about what exactly?”

 

“Well, he has this _friend_ .. he’s been talking with online..”

 

Kathryn didn’t reply, so Regina continued. Her hands began to shake. She quickly placed them under the table top, wringing them together to calm her nerves. 

 

“ - And he has been feeling, well _things_ for her lately. That he can’t explain. He um - He told me that every time he considers these feelings, the rational side comes through and tells him that he should be focusing on the real things in his life. Does that even make sense?”

 

Regina continued wringing her hands together under the table and eyed Kathryn wearily, waiting for her response.

 

“It does, yeah. I suppose it does. I think everyone has an internal battle when feeling that way for the first time with someone else. There’s an emotional side and rational side. It sounds like your friend is just trying to protect his heart. Maybe he’s scared? Why does he feel like the woman in question isn’t ‘real’?”

 

“What?” Regina blinked, still trying to process everything her friend said. Kathryn was right. She absolutely knew she was scared. And of course using her rational thoughts as a way to protect her heart. Typical Regina. 

 

“You said his rational mind was trying to tell him to focus on the real things in life.. Why isn’t this girl real to him as well?”

 

Oh. Right. “Oh, sorry I - I forgot to mention that they have never met..”

 

“What?!” Kathryn laughed “Never met? I’m confused..”

 

“Well, they’ve _met_ .. Just not in person. They met online online about 3 months ago. And now they video call. They’ve been video calling for about 2 months or so I suppose..”

 

“Oh! I see. Okay. Well -” Before Kathryn could answer, the waitress brought their meals over and placed them on the table. The girls said thank you and Kathryn poured them both another glass of Prosecco. Regina was thankful for it. This conversation was the strangest one she’d ever had.

 

“I was going to say.. It sounds like maybe your friend is just protecting his heart. Maybe he’s been hurt in the past and doesn’t want to open himself up again. Or maybe he doesn’t actually want to be with this girl? I’m not sure. It’s up to him to truly know.. Not us. But, to me, it sounds like he’s just protecting himself.” Kathryn shrugged and took another bite of her eggs benedict. 

 

Regina just stared at her friend, contemplating and translating those words to her circumstance. Before she could think, she blurted out: “He called her darling last night..”

 

Kathryn swallowed her bite and laughed. “What??”

 

“Darling. He called her darling. He was half asleep at the time and when she told him he should go to bed, he replied something like “No, darling, it’s okay..”

 

Kathryn laughed again and Regina could bet that she was as red as the tomato on her plate. 

 

“What’s so funny?”

 

Kathryn’s laughter slowed “It - sorry.. It just sounds like something you’d say..”

 

Regina choked on the sip of Prosecco that had begun descending her throat. _Shit_ She coughed a little, trying to hide her shock.

 

“Does it? Perhaps he got it from me..” She smiled awkwardly behind the glass. 

 

Kathryn tilted her head and bore into Regina’s eyes. _Shit shit shit._ She knew. 

 

“Regina..?”

 

The mayor glanced up at her friend, tears in her eyes. 

 

“It’s _you_ isn’t it? We’re talking about you?”

 

 


End file.
